Emmert, based in Cincinnati, Ohio, U.S., is a family owned and operated nutritional feed ingredients supplier that manufactures unique brewer's yeast supplements. The company has been in the Emmert family for more than 100 years.

Emmert's pledge makes the company the first member of IFEEDER's Corporate Chairman's Club, an elite level of giving. The company's donation was recognized during a check signing ceremony recently with IFEEDER Executive Director Ken Thomas and Chairman Dean Warras. "As we examined our core beliefs and the challenges, opportunities and hopes of our industry, we realized we must do more than agree. We must engage, commit and help lead," said Emmert President Mike Manning in a company statement. The company said it chose to donate to IFEEDER, because it is excited to work with a nonprofit and other industry organizations that are "forward thinking" in order to begin the advancement of a "multigenerational impact."

IFEEDER was created in 2009 to address the enormous challenges the U.S. food and feed production industries will face in the next 40 years and beyond, as the world's population grows by almost 2.5 billion people.

"We are excited that The F.L. Emmert Company is now IFEEDER's largest donor on record," said Thomas. "They have made a bold statement to the industry, donating $125,000 toward the development of education and research in feed and agriculture. They are a guiding light for like companies with similar missions and IFEEDER could not be more pleased with their dedication for innovation in the industry, one of IFEEDER's main objectives."

IFEEDER recently contributed $100,000 toward PEDv research and also sponsored the 2013 Council for Agricultural Science and Technology report, "Animal Feed vs. Human Food: Challenges in Sustaining Animal Agriculture Toward 2050."