Groundbreaking for new Dairy Plant is May 7; new ice cream flavor to honor event

A groundbreaking ceremony for the new Dairy Plant at South Dakota State University (see conceptual design above) will take place Friday, May 7. And, a groundbreaking new ice cream flavor will be revealed to commemorate the occasion. The event will begin at 4:30 p.m. on the east side of the Dairy Science Building. Attendees are asked to park in the lot next to the South Dakota Agricultural Heritage Museum, at the corner of 11th Street and Medary Avenue. 

The renovation project will add 10,850 square feet of space onto the east of the existing lab, creating a state-of-the-art facility totaling 17,900 square feet. The remodeling and additions will turn the 50-year-old plant into a modernized dairy processing research and education plant laboratory.

The project will enable the SDSU Dairy Science program to better compete for the best faculty and students. It will provide modern teaching and research facilities, which are necessary to meet the scientific and talent demands of the rapidly growing South Dakota, regional and national dairy industry.

The SDSU Dairy Science program is one of only two in the United States that effectively combines both dairy production and dairy manufacturing, which is demanded by today’s global, science-based dairy products industry.

 To learn more about the Dairy Plant renovation project, contact Craig Russow, SDSU Foundation Major Gifts Officer, at craig.russow@sdsufoundation.org or (605) 697-7475.