About the Author

A member of the sixties generation, Jay Hersch attended the University of Wisconsin in an environment focused on liberal arts and social involvement.

In his senior year, unsure of his future, Hersch attended a Peace Corps forum. Deeply affected by the accounts of former volunteers, Hersch signed up for two life-transforming years working with Colombian campesinos.

Returning home in 1966, Hersch attended Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies, earning a master's degree in political, social, and economic change. After graduation, he worked with the US Offices of Economic Opportunity and Public Health Service.

Transfixed by memories of the mountains of Colombia, Hersch and his wife bought their own farm in Highland County, Virginia, in 1972, beginning a cattle ranching operation.

Using the economic lessons discovered in Colombia establishing an agricultural marketing coop, Hersch transplanted this this paradigm in 1978 to launch Highland Beef Farms, www.highlandbeeffarms.com, which continues to prosper.