USDA to build nutrient-management facility at U of I-led research dairy

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has received $3 million in federal funds toward building a cutting-edge nutrient-management facility at a University of Idaho-led research dairy, which is set to open in early 2026 in the Magic Valley.

The Rupert-based Idaho Center for Agriculture, Food and the Environment (Idaho CAFE) will include the nation’s largest research dairy, operating at a commercial scale to provide real-world answers to the pressing questions facing the state’s dairy producers. The planned USDA facility will lend CAFE flexibility in handling manure, as well as testing and evaluating manure-separation and nutrient-extraction technologies.

“We look forward to working with University of Idaho to build this research facility at Idaho CAFE,” said Dave Bjorneberg, supervisory research agricultural engineer at USDA’s Northwest Irrigation and Soils Research Unit in Kimberly. “The facility will allow researchers to evaluate technologies that will make dairy production systems more productive and profitable.”

Idaho ranks third among U.S. dairy-producing states and is known for its large operations, with an average herd size of 1,600 cows, according to USDA. CAFE will open with a herd of 400 to 600 cows and will gradually grow to encompass 2,000 to 2,500 cows.

A top industry priority is figuring out ways to sustainably handle the waste stream produced by such large dairies.

CAFE will have three earthen lagoons, storing animal manure in water to allow natural bacterial processes to reduce the volume and toxicity of the waste. Lagoon water is loaded with nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium, nutrients essential to crop production, but the slurry is also bulky and expensive to transport.

“There is a point of diminishing returns where they start hauling manure to fields further and further away from the dairy,” said Matt Powell, interim associate dean of research and director of the Idaho Agricultural Experiment Station. “It becomes cost prohibitive.”

Lagoon water will be piped into the nutrient-management facility, where it will be separated into solid, liquid and gas components. USDA and U of I scientists will work together to develop portable and valuable products from those components capable of providing commercial dairies with a good return on their investment.

Powell sees great potential in exploring creative uses for dairy waste. He was among a group of leaders with U of I’s College of Agricultural and Life Sciences who toured a progressive dairy in Spain, where gases from dairy lagoon water were diverted for methane energy production. The solid component was sterilized and used for animal bedding, and the liquid component was reclaimed for irrigation.

“The idea is to provide a value-added option so products can be transported further and further away,” Powell said. “The other aspect is we want dairy operations to be more sustainable.”

Rep. Mike Simpson, R-Idaho, helped USDA secure $2 million toward the facility about two years ago.

Provided there are no cost overruns, the initial allocation should cover construction of a metal-framed nutrient-management building. In mid-November, Simpson announced the inclusion of a $3 million appropriation in the Fiscal Year 2026 Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration Appropriations Bill, which should cover nutrient-management machinery and equipment.

“Throughout my time in Congress, I have proudly worked to ensure that Idaho’s agriculture can continue to thrive. Like many agriculture sectors, the dairy industry plays a significant role in our state’s economy,” Simpson said in a press release. “Securing funding for this world-class research center is crucial for promoting long-term sustainability in Idaho’s agriculture industry. I am committed to supporting Idaho’s dairy industry and ensuring our tax dollars are being put to work right here at home.”

The university is now wrapping up corral construction, procurement of dairy equipment and hiring a dairy manager and work crews in anticipation of Idaho CAFE’s forthcoming opening date.

U of I has sent building plans for the nutrient-management facility to USDA’s architecture and design team for review. USDA anticipates breaking ground on the nutrient-management facility in the spring of 2027 and completing it by late summer.