The Sausage Factory Co. Inc.

    By Art Nadler

    When people bite into one of The Sausage Factory Co.'s hot dogs or sausages, they literally taste the difference. That's because the owners of this Carson City-based family business won't compromise quality for cheap quantity.

    The Sausage Factory Co. Inc., located at 259 Sage St. in Carson City, NV., has been producing sausages since 1968. They make 30 different varieties of meats such as Italian and pork sausage, chorizo, smoked bratwurst, linguisa, knockwurst, hot dogs, beef franks, etc.

    "When people taste our hot dogs, they say that's the way it use to be," says Joseph Tonino, assistant vice president. "We use pork and beef for our hot dogs. No fillers. No soybean or milk fillers." Tonino, 33, moved to northern Nevada 10 years to help expand the family business. The company was started by his father, Alcide, and uncle, Luciano, in Italy. They moved to Hackensack, N.J., in 1954, and opened the Ideal Sausage Co.

    The younger Tonino says his father decided to buy an existing 2,500 square-foot production plant in Carson City in 1968 because the area reminded him of Italy, and he saw an opportunity to grow his business on the West Coast. He immediately expanded the facility to 8,000 square feet.

    Currently, The Sausage Factory's products are sold in northern Nevada and California. Most of the casinos in northern Nevada use approximately 80 percent of their meats, and the remainder is sold in the Scolari's, Smith's, Raley's and Albertson's supermarkets.

    Tonino says what makes the company's meat products stand out is that they only use wholesome cuts of pork and beef, natural casings for the hot dogs and sausages and natural spices. Freshness is important. Pork sausage, for example, is usually ground when the plant opens at 5:30 a.m. and is delivered to supermarkets by 10 a.m. the same day.

    "We feel there is enough junk out there on the market, and we want to change that," Tonino says. "It takes so much time to make a good glass of wine," Otto Sandmeier, the master sausage maker at the Sausage Factory, says with the hint of a German accent. He's been in the sausage business for 45 years, having come from Victor Fine Foods in Lodi, Calif.

    The Sausage Factory products cost 10 to 20 cents more a pound, but Tonino says that's because they only use quality meats. And, Sandmeier says, because they are a small company, custom orders for banquets aren't a problem.

    There were only six employees at the plant 10 years ago, Tonino says. Now there are 30 people on staff. Two new offices are being added to the facility, and the production floor is undergoing modifications. An additional 22,000 square feet of distribution space is also in the works.

    Tonino says he plans to have a retail store in operation soon at the plant site, where Italian products such as pastas and oils will be sold.

    "Very few products stand up to our quality," a proud Tonino says. "We sell the Cadillac of foods and Cadillacs only. Our hot dogs are not going to slide down your throat, and you won't burp them up."

    For more information, contact: The Sausage Factory Co. Inc., 259 Sage St., Carson City, NV. 89706. Phone: (775) 882-8110 and 1-800-854-7877. Fax: (775) 882-7875.