S. James Rickert, along with his wife Mary Rickert and their son James, own and operate Western Agricultural Services, a professional farm and ranch management and appraisal firm. They provide farm and ranch management services on over 50,000 acres in five counties in Northern California. The Rickerts also offer appraisal and real estate brokerage services as part of their business model. They specialize in organic beef production by marketing a branded beef product and supply bovine raw materials for bio-medical device companies.
The Rickerts have been managing the Prather Ranch since 1979. Jim is a fourth-generation agriculturalist with a background in meat processing. He attended Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo where he majored in agriculture and has a Masters degree from Purdue. He is a leader of the American Society of Farm Managers and Rural Appraisers, for which he was president of the California Chapter and is currently the first vice president and is scheduled to become president-elect in fall 2012.
Jim has been an active member of the California Cattleman’s Association, California Rangeland Trust-Technical Advisory Committee, the Shasta Land Trust among other farm and conservation organizations. He has also been the recipient of numerous awards for ranching, management, community and conservation contributions.