Texas A&M University’s new Meat Sciences & Technology Center will be housed on the university’s main campus, following a vote by the Texas A&M University System Board of Regents during a special meeting March 27 to pivot from a previously planned site for the facility at Texas A&M-RELLIS, located in Bryan.
According to university news releases, regents also approved adding $18.76 million to the previously approved $114.6 million for the project, which was approved in November. This brings the total investment cost to $133.36 million for the project.
The gist
Following the board’s vote, the new 85,600-square-foot Meat Sciences & Technology Center will be built along Finfeather Road on West Campus and serve as the anchor of a future agriculture district, according to a March 30 news release from the university system.
“This is exactly where this program belongs,” board Chairman Robert Albritton said in the release. “At the center of campus, at the center of our mission, and at the center of an industry that matters to every Texan.”
The context
Texas A&M began its meat science program in 1926.
The new center will replace the existing Rosenthal Meat Science and Technology Center, which was built in 1983 and no longer meets the program’s demands, according to the release. According to the existing center's website, it is the most comprehensive facility of its kind in the U.S., featuring:
- Harvesting facilities for multiple species
- Four large meat coolers
- A processing and fabrication area
- Two cutting rooms
- Three smokehouses
- A meat packaging area
- A full-service meat retail area open to the public
The facility planned for the main campus will feature modern labs, classrooms, processing space and public-facing capabilities, according to the release.
What they’re saying
"Texas A&M’s investment in the new Meat Sciences and Technology Center strengthens our partnership and advances one of College Station’s key targeted industries, animal health,” said Michael Ostrowski, College Station’s chief development officer, in an email. “This project expands research and workforce capabilities that directly support the companies we aim to attract, while contributing to the development of complementary innovation districts that connect research, talent and industry."
“This isn’t just about a building,” Texas A&M University System Chancellor Glenn Hegar said in a release. “It’s about putting agriculture where it belongs, front and center, and making sure we’re preparing students to lead in an industry that feeds this state and this country.”
“This facility allows us to reimagine meat science for the next generation,” AgriLife Research Director G. Cliff Lamb said in a release. “By integrating advanced technologies, we are expanding research capacity and advancing discovery to address critical challenges across animal agriculture and global food systems.”
More details
The new Meat Sciences & Technology Center project is funded through Texas A&M University System financing, AgriLife Research revenue, private gifts and Available University Fund revenue, according to the release.
Construction on the center is slated to finish in 2028.
