In all phases of his professional life Hermann Hagspiel was in touch with the production and marketing of food products. It started with daily work on the family farm, the production of hard cheese during the summer season on the alpine pastures. It continued in the advisory services offered to food processors in a number of export markets – as diverse as Russia, Belgium, Japan or Bulgaria – and reached its preliminary climax in the elaboration of quality standards for sustainable food production and its certification throughout the supply chain jointly with the most renown Austrian research institutes in the field. In this context, food standards above legal requirements have been established for 10 categories of products reaching from milk and meat via eggs, fruit and vegetables to oilseeds and herbs, including products processed from these raw materials. In the meantime, the accumulated know-how has been applied in comprehensive feasibility studies on regional milk and meat processing projects in Germany and Austria but also in a development cooperation context in the Highlands of Papua New Guinea.