Areas that are easy to cultivate are scarce in inner Alpine locations, and only permanent grassland is available for crop cultivation. Under these conditions, production can only be expanded through the purchase of operating resources, although there is usually no significant economic effect due to the unfavorable cost structure. Organic, value-added agriculture has long been a successful option for these companies. 54 organic dairy farms in Salzburg's Lungau have further strengthened this strategy and completely forego the purchase of inputs. Under the slogan “Make do with what you have!”, she developed a premium milk brand, “Reine Lungau”, which aims to maximize value creation on the market.

In the research project, the basic production rules were defined together with the companies. Afterwards, a provisional market price of €1.99 per liter of milk was set with the dairy, that is Salzburg Milch. In order to secure the added value of this outstanding high price, an evaluation process was started in the research project. Using the farm management tool FarmLife, an individual farm life cycle assessment including a full cost calculation was created. The results (strengths and weaknesses) were discussed with the companies in individual discussions in order to take targeted improvement measures. These were generally supplemented by an advisory and educational program in the form of workshops.

The results from FarmLife confirm the excellent eco-efficiency of the milk, which is produced from 95.8% hay, grass silage and forage. None of the material cycles affected by agriculture are significantly polluted. The altitude of over 1,100 meters above sea level promotes biodiversity. Until the end of production, “Reine Lungau” was the outstanding dairy product in Austria in terms of its eco-efficiency. The end was forced not by a lack of rural production, but by the challenges of marketing. The project companies have organized themselves into an association and have so far remained true to the principles of the project in a somewhat weaker form. Together they are now successfully marketing beef from old cows and calves with the company METRO in Salzburg.