Marion Eugene Ensminger

Marion Eugene ("Gene") Ensminger (1908–1998), affectionately known as "Doc E," was an American animal scientist, educator, and author. He made significant contributions to the field of animal agriculture and helped advance knowledge and improve practices in livestock management through his research, writing, teaching, and international outreach. He is the author of 22 books on animal science and husbandry.

Biography Ensminger was born on May 28, 1908 in Stover, Missouri, to a family with deep agricultural roots. He was the second of seven children who were raised on a general livestock and dairy farm. Ensminger completed a bachelor's degree in science and Master of Arts degree from the University of Missouri. He obtained his doctorate from the University of Minnesota in 1941. In the same year, he married Audrey Helen Watts, who hailed from Winnipeg, Canada. The pair met at the University of Minnesota where they worked together as colleagues. The couple had one son, John.

Ensminger began his career in 1934 He then started teaching at the University of Massachusetts and, later, at the University of Minnesota. Ensminger began working as a faculty at Washington State College (now Washington State University) in 1941. He was appointed in 1944 as chair of its animal science department, a position he held until 1962.

Awards and recognition Ensminger received several awards and recognitions. One of these was the Bouffault International Animal Agriculture Award, which cited him as “one of the world’s great humanitarians”. WSU also named its beef center, M.E. Ensminger Beef Cattle Center in his honor.

Aside from his research work, Ensminger is also known for his extension works and initiatives for international agricultural technology schools. During the 1990s he partnered with Iowa State University to conduct lectures and seminars around the world. He founded schools in Russia, Ukraine, Cuba, and China, among other countries isolated by communism despite the criticism he received from government officials and friends.

Ensminger was a co-founder and the inaugural president of the American Society of Agricultural Consultants, established in 1964; and served as President of the AgriServices Foundation from 1962 until his death in 1998.