The Texas Farm Bureau, the largest farm organization in Texas, told employees they are not permitted to wear Nike gear while working.

A spokesman for the bureau, Gene Hall, said in an email to employees obtained by KWTX on Friday that the company made the decision in efforts to avoid controversy.

“There is a wide range of viewpoints on the Nike controversy,” the email read. “Texas Farm Bureau and Affiliated Companies employees are asked to not wear Nike branded apparel while representing the companies.”

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“We are choosing to remove our companies from this controversy by discontinuing the use of Nike branded apparel for business purposes,” the email continued. “The attire you choose on your own time is a personal matter.”

The Texas Farm Bureau represents the interests of agricultural producers and rural communities across the southern state as the "Voice of Texas Agriculture,” according to its website.

The move comes weeks after Nike unveiled its new ad campaign featuring Colin Kaepernick, who was the first NFL player to kneel during the national anthem to protest racial inequality.

Nike's decision to feature Kaepernick prompted a whirlwind of criticism from President Trump Donald John TrumpBiden on Trump's refusal to commit to peaceful transfer of power: 'What country are we in?' Romney: 'Unthinkable and unacceptable' to not commit to peaceful transition of power Two Louisville police officers shot amid Breonna Taylor grand jury protests MORE and his base, who slammed the move as being unpatriotic.

The deal also prompted a number of other institutions to say they would stop purchasing Nike products in protest of the brand's ad campaign.

A small private college in Missouri said it would end its use of uniforms displaying the Nike logo and a store in Colorado said it would remove all Nike merchandise following the move.