Michigan State University has received $4.4 million from the state of Michigan to renovate an on-campus food processing laboratory and create a new mobile food processing unit. On the East Lansing campus, the $3.2 million project primarily involves renovating an existing lab in the Food Science and Human Nutrition Building. The room is being equipped with more modern features such as walk-in coolers, freezers, a plant observation area, a kitchen and lab for product analysis, new ventilation, proper drainage and more. Bolstering MSU partnerships with community colleges will be a mobile food lab that’s able to move around the state to accommodate the 10 partnering community colleges affiliated with the MSU Institute of Agricultural Technology. The project, which received a $1.2 million investment, allows the community colleges to offer a dual certificate and associate degree program in food processing. These improvements in food processing are aimed at a larger goal of workforce development, preparing MSU and community college students to integrate seamlessly into food processing careers.

• The renovated on-campus laboratory will serve more than 700 undergraduate students each year, representing 12 courses and three departments.
• MSU seeks to grow a highly qualified workforce for food processing, a segment that encompasses nearly half of all agricultural jobs in Michigan.