Bill Reed--Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer
Reed grew up on a Virginia cattle ranch, Brookview Farm, a leader in raising free-range, grass-fed beef for more than twenty years.
Reed’s lifelong connection to the land inspired him to homestead in Alaska after he graduated from the University of Virginia. Together with his brothers and friends, Reed built a log cabin by hand, felling the trees and hand-milling the wood they needed. For food, they fished for salmon and trout, hunted birds and ducks, and foraged currants and blackberries. There was also the occasional three-hour boat ride to buy staples such as cooking oil, rice, and pasta. Meals were prepared over a wood stove using water collected from a nearby spring.
Returning to civilization meant a move to Eastern Europe where he worked with the Czech brewery Krusovice, learning the beer industry from hops to barrel. He returned to the US in 1995. A short visit to San Francisco became a permanent move when he joined Odwalla, a fresh juice maker at the forefront of creating a socially and environmentally responsible food company. Starting as a truck driver, in six years Reed became the director of operations, with yearly sales expanding from $25 to $150 million during that time.
Eager to run a company, in 2001 Reed was hired as Chief Executive Officer of New Leaf Paper, maker of environmentally-responsible, recycled paper. Sales grew from $3.5 million to $20 million during his five-year tenure.
In March 2006, Reed joined his childhood friend and fellow rancher JP Thieriot to realize another lifelong dream: to create a venture that raised consumer awareness and appreciation for the health and taste benefits of grass-fed beef.
J.P. Thieriot--Co-Founder and Head of Uruguay Operations
J.P. Thieriot is a native San Franciscan born to an Argentine mother. Growing up, he divided his time between San Francisco and cattle ranches in Argentina.
After graduating from Yale with a degree in environmental sciences, he returned to the Bay Area to pursue a career as a venture capitalist and entrepreneur, with special focus on technology businesses in South America. He never lost his passion for 100% grass-fed beef or the desire to bring that flavor to the U.S. Along with another childhood friend, Wil Harris (no relation to Harris Ranch!), he opened El Raigon restaurant in the North Beach neighborhood of San Francisco, a steakhouse that served only pasteur-raised, grass-fed beef.
Starting in 2002, Thieriot and Reed acquired ranches in Argentina and Uruguay, learning the grass-fed beef business from pasture to slaughterhouse to distribution and marketing in the US.
Dana Dolder--National Sales
Dana was a 4-H member in school, studied in Italy during college, and has never really been far from the farms of her childhood and the business of producing healthy food. She grew up in San Luis Obispo and graduated from UCSB. Her first job was based on sustainable agricultural practices in the Pacific Northwest. In 2004, she went to work for Booth Creek, the owner of well-known brands such as Petaluma Poultry, Coleman Natural Foods, and Penn Valley Farms. After three years, she went to work with Niman Ranch, a leader in the production of natural and sustainable meat.
Michelle Waterman--European Sales
Michelle started as an Animal Health Inspector for the UK government, which involved enforcement of UK legislation with respect to animal traceability, welfare and husbandry. She then began a long career with Tesco, the UK's biggest retailer, and was responsible for the production and sourcing of all meat, fish, and poultry sold by the mega-chain. Michelle wrote and implemented Tesco’s Livestock Codes of Practice (which cover welfare, food safety, traceability and environmental responsibility). Under Michelle’s guidance, Tesco implemented visionary and rigorous policies relating to livestock, such as the prohibition of genetically modified feed, the banning of all non-stun slaughter methods, and the creation of 'equivalent' standards of production in countries as far afield as Argentina, Brazil, and Uruguay.
More recently, Michelle has consulted for some of the largest retailers in the world, visiting ranches and production facilities for the largest beef producers in the US, South America, and Europe. She has written and implemented livestock standards for European retailers and developed high-quality supply chains to support their customers.
Michelle currently lives 35 miles South of London, where she raises beef cattle, sheep, laying hens and agricultural crops. She has a degree in Agriculture and Land Management.
Reid Martin--West Coast Sales
Reid Martin has always had a passion for all things cattle and was happy to find a home at Estancia. Growing up on a small family dairy, hay, and cattle ranch, Reid learned from a young age the importance of a good work ethic and family. Reid spent his childhood judging livestock and raising animals with the local 4-H club and Future Farmers of America (FFA) chapter. At age 11, Reid took his first plunge into the cattle market when he traded three dairy heifers to his father for three crossbred beef calves. He hasn’t looked back as he has helped his father build a solid herd of Angus-bred, free-range, grass-fed cattle.
Reid continued his studies of agriculture at Chico State where he competed nationally on the Collegiate Livestock Judging Team. As a member of the team he traveled throughout the U.S. for competitions and further honed his abilities in livestock and carcass evaluation. However, it wasn’t just bulls and heifers that Reid studied at Chico. Studying international business, Italian, and Japanese occupied him when he wasn’t in the pasture. Italian and business took him to Turin, Italy, for a year. After graduating from Chico, he took a job teaching English in Japanese public schools on the JET Program.
After two years full of amazing experiences and travels, Reid was back in his native California, helping out on his family's ranch. During his time at home Reid heard about Estancia and knew that it was a perfect fit because it combined his interests with international business and sustainable free-range, grass-fed beef.
Wil Harris--Co-Founder
Wil grew up in Oregon on a farm raising grass-fed beef and riding horses. His family has been in sustainable farming practices since he was a child. After graduating from the University of Virginia, Wil spent 5 years working in Buenos Aires in banking and agriculture.
Fabiola Loza--Argentine Operations
Fabiloa grew up on a ranch in Northern Argentina where her family raises grass-fed beef for Estancia in the same way they've been doing for nearly a century. Her father runs over 10,000 head of cattle in Entre Rios, a state known for high protein grasses, consistent annual rainfall, and healthy climate for Hereford and Angus cattle.
Fabiola studied accounting and marketing in Buenos Aires and has worked with Estancia in every part of the business. She has raised free-range, grass-fed cattle, worked in the slaughterhouse, and now oversees Estancia's Argentine operations.