The co-founder and chairman of the board of Kemin Industries has died.
Information from the company says 98-year-old R.W. Nelson died at his home Monday. Nelson was born in Kansas City and moved to Des Moines when he was seven. He graduated from Dowling Catholic High School and Drake University. He founded Kemin Industries in Des Moines in 1961, and the company expanded to become an international supplier of specialty ingredients for human and animal health and nutrition products, with operations in 90 countries.
Nelson was celebrated as an innovator and was recognized for his scientific discoveries and business achievements — including citations from presidents Nixon and Carter.
Nelson is survived by his wife, Mary, and four children, thirteen grandchildren, and seven great-grandchildren.
Governor Kim Reynolds released this statement on Nelson’s death:
“Kevin and I were saddened to hear of the passing of R.W. Nelson, who founded and built Kemin Industries into a world-class ingredients manufacturing company right here in Des Moines,” Gov. Reynolds said. “As a graduate of Dowling and Drake, he was an Iowan to his very core; as a veteran of the Army Air Corps and a lifelong philanthropist, he embodied service to others throughout his amazing life; and as a legendary agricultural innovator, he changed lives for the better all across the world. R.W.’s influence will be missed, but his legacy will live on. Kevin and I are praying for his wife Mary, his children, and his many other surviving family members during this difficult time.”