K-State is making an investment in education, innovation and the future of agriculture.
The Kansas dairy industry has exploded in the past 20 years.
Among Kansas’ agricultural industries, the dairy component has experienced the most rapid growth. Many large-scale dairy operations are relocating to the Great Plains because of the wide-open spaces perfect for raising dairy cattle.
This expansion called for K-State College of Agriculture to take action. The dairy research unit has officially earmarked funding to assist in the $45-million overhaul of the Manhattan teaching and researching dairy facility.
Future of the farm
The current K-State dairy facility was built in 1977 with late 70s technology that lags far behind Kansas’ present-day advances.
To train the future dairy workforce, K-State plans to demolish the facility and build a brand-new one from the ground up.
The design committee will look at more recently upgraded university facilities to get a good idea of what works. K-State wants to better represent the conditions of the Great Plains dairy farmer.
Not only will the new facility attract more students to the dairy industry and educate them about wide-ranging career opportunities in Kansas, but it will also help Kansas dairy operations address a growing workforce gap by preparing future employees to operate advanced equipment.
The wish list
Aiming to grow the facility’s teaching and research abilities, K-State will implement robotic milkers, a small rotary deck, reconfigured milk truck traffic patterns and new bulk holding-tank designs.
The facility will also have specific spaces for dry and lactating cows, individual stalls and group pens for research on cow comfort and nutrition, and updated treatment pens. The facility will be designed to be flexible with an ever-changing industry.
By blending hands-on learning with modern technology, the new facility will prepare students to step directly into a future-forward industry that supports Kansas agriculture.
By Kate Ellwood
Curated from K-State dairy unit gets greenlight for major upgrade