Part of working in agriculture means being adaptable. And part of being a land-grant university means being prepared to help farmers and producers when they need to adapt.
Leaders at Michigan State University did just that over 10 years ago when building a new aviary facility in response to legislation passed by the state of Michigan that modified the requirements necessary for housing laying hens and other farm animals.
At the time of its completion in 2012, the public research facility was the first of its kind in the U.S. No other land-grant university had infrastructure like it to conduct research that would give egg producers the information needed to respond to shifting regulations.