From one truck to a downtown landmark — and the family that saved the World Food Prize.
John Ruan founded his trucking business in Des Moines in 1932 with a single truck. It grew into Ruan Transportation Management Systems, a third-party logistics company with more than 5,000 team members and over 300 locations nationwide.
In the early 1970s Ruan built the 36-story Ruan Center, a familiar landmark on the Des Moines skyline, to house his growing companies; the family also owned Bankers Trust.
Ruan is privately held; the revenue and employee figures here are third-party estimates, not company-disclosed. John Ruan's $10 million endowment of the World Food Prize (1997) is documented.
In 1997 John Ruan endowed the World Food Prize with a $10 million gift, securing the future of the foremost international award for progress against global hunger. He was also the force behind restoring the former Des Moines Public Library into the Hall of Laureates, now home to the World Food Prize Foundation.
His son, John Ruan III (died 2021, at age 78), succeeded him in the family businesses and chaired the World Food Prize Foundation.
Ruan is based in Des Moines, Iowa. Ruan Transportation remains family-owned, one of the nation's largest trucking operations
1932.
John Ruan — founder and philanthropist
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