Kemin Industries, a family-owned ingredient manufacturer, recently shared the news that its co-founder, R.W. Nelson, passed away peacefully at his home on Monday, April 7, at the age of 98. 

As a global business visionary, inventor, and philanthropist, Nelson leaves behind a legacy of transforming lives, the company says.

Born shortly before the start of the U.S.'s Great Depression, Rolland Wade “Bud” Nelson witnessed many history-defining moments that shaped the late-20th and early-21st centuries. But R.W. did more than experience these events; he created his own legacy that helped transform a billion lives around the world every day, Kemin says.

The third child of Bart and Lily Nelson’s six children, Nelson grew up in Iowa, graduated from Dowling Catholic High School in 1944, and started college on a football scholarship at Drake University before he was drafted in World War II. As a serviceman in the U.S. Air Force, he spent three years in the Philippines, becoming crew chief for B-29 bombers and earned several service ribbons along the way.

After returning from duty, Nelson resumed his studies at Drake, majoring in biology. During this time, he went on a blind date with an Iowa State University student, Mary Kelleher. Set up by her cousin, who wanted an introduction to Mary’s college roommate, Mary insisted that she would only make the introduction if he brought someone for her, and that someone was Nelson. They would go on to date for several years, marry in 1953, and spend the next 72 years together.

The first of the Nelsons’ five children, Christopher, was born in 1954, followed by Elizabeth (“Libby”), Janet, David, and Molly. Restless to start his own business and follow in the footsteps of his father and brother, and unhappy about his future prospects in his current role, Nelson struck out on his own in 1961. With $10,000 in savings, a living room for their home office, and five small children, R.W. and Mary created an agricultural ingredient company in Des Moines, Iowa that would become known as Kemin Industries.

Sensing an unmet need in the market, Nelson applied his experience in feed additives, his scientific background, and his ingenuity to create flavors, crop preservatives, and antioxidants for animal producers and farmers. He mixed them by hand in a Maytag wringer washer at his father’s wool barn—the company’s manufacturing facility. He did this while Mary tended to the administrative side of the business.

Nelson always focused first on serving customers, which led Kemin into new areas. By 1967, the business had grown too big for the Nelsons’ living room, and a small office was built on the same site as the manufacturing plant, built four years earlier. Today, Kemin’s state-of-the-art, multi-million-dollar worldwide headquarters campus occupies the same area as the original facilities.

For over six decades, R.W. and Mary built Kemin from a small Midwest company into a global leader in ingredients and scientific innovations, offering more than 500 specialty ingredients that better the health and well-being of people, pets, animals, livelihoods, and the planet. Today, the Kemin footprint spans six continents and serves customers in more than 120 countries. Known as Kemin’s most dedicated marketer and salesman, Nelson came to the office for nearly 60 years. He was beloved by countless customers around the world and thousands of Kemin employees whose lives he impacted, the company says.

Related: Kemin Food Technologies appoints sales director