What is the difference between AA, A and AB sheep casings?

They are quality grades. AA is the top grade, A the standard grade and AB the grade for products and lines that tolerate more variation. All three are selected to the same 2 mm calibre tolerance. Tell us your sausage type and we advise the grade.

How long are your sheep casing ends?

We mainly supply long-end material: 7, 10, 13 or 16 metres and more per end. Longer ends mean fewer reloads on an automatic filling line. Shorter standard lengths are available on request.

Where do your sheep casings come from?

From China, Australia and New Zealand. All origins are selected in our own facility, Hunan Divine Foodstuff Technology in Shaoshan, and checked again in Zeewolde before shipment.

Do you supply sheep casings only on soft tubes?

Soft tubes are our main make-up for sheep casings because they load fastest at the stuffer. Salted bundles, pipes and other make-ups are produced on request. Packing is in barrels, E2 crates or buckets.

Can I request a sample in my calibre?

Yes. Use the sample form and state calibre, quality grade, length, make-up and sausage type. Samples ship within days and our sales team follows up.

Natural sheep casings | AA/A/AB, 2 mm selection

Sheep casings for small-calibre lines: 2 mm selection, ends up to 16 metres.

Your sausage. Our case.

Small intestines of the sheep, sourced in China, Australia and New Zealand and selected in our own facility in Hunan. AA, A or AB quality, 2 mm strict selection, long ends of 7, 10, 13 or 16 metres and more, mainly on soft tubes.

2 mmstrict calibre selection

16 m+longest standard end

3origins: China, Australia, New Zealand

Measured in 2 mm steps, because small calibres forgive nothing.

A hot dog or chipolata shows every millimetre of variation in the casing. That is why sheep casings are selected to a 2 mm tolerance in Shaoshan, end by end, against a calibre gauge. You receive one calibre per bundle and a uniform diameter on the line. Which calibre fits which sausage is laid out in the casing calibre guide.

On the tube, straight onto the horn.

Sheep casings are thin and go onto the stuffing horn faster when they arrive shirred on a soft tube. Most of our sheep production ships this way, in long ends of 7 to 16 metres and more. Salted bundles and pipes remain available on request. The difference in handling, shelf life and cost per metre is explained in soft tubes versus salted bundles.

What a sheep casing has to do on your line

A sheep casing is the thinnest natural casing, and the one that shows every flaw. It has to be uniform in calibre, because a hot dog line fills hundreds of pieces a minute and a 2 mm deviation changes the weight of every one. It has to be long, because reloading a thin casing costs more time than reloading a hog casing. And it has to be clean and strong, so it takes the pressure at the stuffing horn and the heat in the smokehouse without bursting. Teijsen selects on all three, by hand, in Shaoshan, and checks every lot again in Zeewolde.

How we select

Sourcing from slaughter plants in China, Australia and New Zealand that we audit ourselves. The origins are kept apart from intake to shipment.
Desalting and grading in Hunan Divine Foodstuff Technology: every end is measured against a calibre gauge and sorted in 2 mm steps, then graded AA, A or AB.
Length sorting separates 7, 10, 13 and 16 m+ material. Read why long-end casings pay back on an automatic line.
Make-up mainly on soft tubes; salted bundles or pipes on request.
Inspection and packing in Zeewolde, under IFS Food Higher Level (96.18 % in the 2026 audit), before the container closes.

Sausages made in sheep casings

Sheep casings are the casing for small-diameter products: hot dogs and frankfurters, breakfast sausages, sausage sticks, Nacki, merguez, chipolata and salchicha. The calibre depends on the product and the market; our sales team confirms availability per lot. If you are weighing sheep against a small hog calibre, compare hog, sheep and beef casings first, then request a sample in the calibre you run.