The American Feed Industry Association awarded Dr. Trevor Tompkins the 2013 Distinguished Service Award for his contributions to the feed industry and to the association. He was honored May 14, 2013, at the board of directors meeting in Arlington, Va.
Tompkins has more than 30 years' experience in the industry. He retired in 2011 as the CEO of Milk Specialties Global, where he expanded the reach of the dairy into food products. He then founded venture | dairy, an investment company that works with local partners in global, emerging markets to bring capital, technology, education and opportunity to producers and entrepreneurs throughout the dairy value chain. Currently, venture | dairy is working on projects in India, Nicaragua, Ethiopia, Rwanda and Kenya.
"This industry really has contributed to the agricultural bounty of this country," said Tomkins as he addressed the association's board of directors. "Food security is one of the single biggest issues and if we don't address it, we have no hope of feeding 9 billion people by 2050."
Tompkins received his Ph.D. in agriculture from the University of Reading in the UK. An advocate of international animal agriculture development, he has been active with Heifer International, chairing the Heifer Foundation for several years and has served on the board of directors for Heifer International. He was named a pioneer trustee of the Institute for Feed Education and Research and currently serves on the board of Women Thrive Worldwide. Tompkins was also selected to serve on the National Research Council's subcommittee that revised the 2001 Nutrient Requirements of Dairy Cattle. Tomkins was a former chair of the American Feed Industry Association's nutrition committee and served twice on its executive committee. He has also served two terms on the association's board of directors.
"I thank this organization enormously. I feel truly humbled," Tompkins said of the award.
