Mónica Herrera Carrión, a Puerto Rican from Hatillo, left her home to pursue a master’s degree in Food Culture and Communication in Italy. She fell in love with cheese after trying authentic mozzarella made from buffalo milk. To complete her degree, she contacted a cheese producer in France and proposed a 90-day internship in exchange for designing a communication strategy for the farm.
In 2013, she arrived at the La Quesne farm in Bois-Héroult, a small town in Normandy, despite not speaking French and having only exchanged a few emails with the owner. Initially, she felt uncertain and alone, but the experience turned out to be a defining moment in her life. The farm’s self-sufficient approach to food production, with vegetables sourced from a nearby friend who uses animal-powered farming, resonated with her studies and ideals. Today, Mónica produces cheese at the farm, which has become her life’s destination.