What Is Meyer Luskin's Net Worth?
Meyer Luskin is a Los Angeles-based entrepreneur and philanthropist who has a net worth of $1 billion. Meyer Luskin earned his net worth as the founder and CEO of Scope Industries, which pioneered the process of recycling expired bakery products into animal feed. Scope removes waste from hundreds of bakeries and food manufacturers, then processes the expired product into horse and cow feed.
Luskin founded Scope Industries in the 1950s and has since grown it into a hugely profitable company that generates over $120 million per year in revenue. Thanks to Luskin's business acumen, Scope has grown at an average annual rate of 600%. The truly brilliant idea behind Scope is that it is literally making a fortune off of someone else's trash and the end users (horses and cows) do not have high taste standards! Meyer is famous for donating $100 million to his alma mater UCLA. It was the second largest gift UCLA has ever received behind billionaire music mogul David Geffen's $200 million donation to UCLA's medical school in 2002. Half of Luskin's gift was used to establish the Meyer and Renee Luskin School of Public Affairs at UCLA.
Early Life
Meyer Luskin grew up on the Lower East Side of New York City and in the Boyle Heights neighborhood of Los Angeles. His father immigrated to the U.S. from Lithuania and worked as a plumber. A 2022 "UCLA Magazine" article stated, "Because his father's work included carrying 60 to 70 pounds of tools and equipment up the stairs of six-story tenement buildings, he often said to Meyer, 'I don't want you to have to make a living by the sweat on your back. … There's a better way to make a living than what I had to do.'" After high school, Luskin enrolled at UCLA, earning a scholarship that paid $30 per semester, which completely covered his $29 tuition. In 1949, Meyer graduated with a bachelor's degree in economics after taking a break from college to serve in the military. He later attended Stanford, where he earned a master's degree in business administration.
Meyer Luskin second from left (Photo by Rachel Murray/Getty Images)
Career
After founding Scope Industries in the '50s, Luskin eventually turned it into a company that brings in more than $120 million in revenue annually. The UCLA "Optimist Profiles" website referred to the company as "a model of sustainable business" and stated that Meyer has "made it his mission to unite the intellectual capital of UCLA with civic leaders to address the most pressing issues confronting our community, nation and the world."
UCLA has named the Meyer and Renee Luskin School Of Public Affairs, Luskin Center for Innovation, and Luskin Conference Center in his honor. Meyer has served on the Board of Advisors at the Santa Monica – UCLA Medical Center and Orthopaedic Hospital and as a director of the network infrastructure company Myricom, Inc. as well as the UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs Advisory Board, UCLA Foundation, and Alliance for College-Ready Public Schools.
Personal Life and Philanthropy
Meyer and his wife, Renee, were ranked #9 on "The Chronicle of Philanthropy's" list of 2010's 50 most generous donors, thanks to their $100.5 million donation to UCLA. According to the publication, "Of the total, $50-million will endow the university's School of Public Affairs; $40-million will help pay for a new building to house a conference center, guest quarters, and a faculty club; and $10-million will endow a speakers series." The couple was presented with the UCLA Medal, the university's highest honor, in 2019. The Luskins also donated $100 million to the Los Angeles Orthopedic Hospital (LAOH), which a 2012 article on "Patch News" stated was "the single largest gift made by an individual benefactor during his or her lifetime in the 100-year history of the institution." After the Renee and Meyer Luskin Children's Clinic was opened at LAOH, Meyer said of the donation, "Renee and I are deeply gratified to see the impact of our contribution to Los Angeles Orthopedic Hospital that has resulted in continued outstanding and patient-centered treatment for all children in need of specialized care by pediatric orthopaedists. Knowing that children are receiving the best possible care by compassionate clinicians in a child-friendly environment reaffirms our commitment to the inspiring work of Los Angeles Orthopedic Hospital."
Meyer Luskin Explaines why He Gives:
