For four whole generations now, the Sluka family has handled poultry and the by-product feathers, and the origins of the business can be traced back to 1880. The starting point was a ?ourishing trade in geese, in Reichenberg, Bohemia – founded by Ignaz Sluka, who at the time already did business with rawfeathers. Ignaz had ?vesons, and two of them, Karl and Adolf, joined him in the business of geese, ducks and feathers. For operational reasons, they relocated to Coswig in Saxony. This is recorded in documents dated 22 June 1912. The other three brothers remained in what was then Czechoslovakia.

During World War II the business was shut down for being “an enemy of the people”, and returned in 1945. As a result, two branches developed: one in Coswig, Saxony, and the other in Nittenau, Bavaria. Again, the operation in Saxony had to deal with the chaos of the post-war period. This meant that they were transformed into a “people-owned company” during the time East Germany existed.

But there was always at least one member of the Sluka family working as a manager in the business. In May 1990, still before reuni?cation, it was reprivatised.

The Bavarian branch in Nittenau was founded in 1952 by Karl Sluka, the grandson of the founder Ignaz Sluka. Since the death of Karl senior in 1991, the business is managed by his son, also Karl Sluka, the fourth generation. And so in 2012 we could celebrate the 60-year anniversary of the Bavarian business. Today, many family members still work in both branches, from grandchildren to grandmother.