Idaho a step closer to having largest research dairy in US
The University of Idaho's plan to build the nation’s largest research dairy and experimental farm has cleared a big hurdle
BOISE, Idaho (AP) — The University of Idaho’s plan to build the nation’s largest research dairy and experimental farm cleared a big hurdle on Tuesday.
Idaho Gov. Brad Little and two other statewide-elected officials on the Idaho Land Board approved the university’s plan to use $23 million to buy roughly 640 acres of farmland in south-central Idaho, the heart of the state’s dairy industry.
That would be the main focus of the school's proposed Center for Agriculture, Food and the Environment, or CAFE.
Idaho's dairy industry is the third-largest dairy producer in the nation, behind California and Wisconsin. But the industry in Idaho — and in general — faces a range of challenges with greenhouse gas emissions from animals, land and water pollution, and waste systems from dairies that can have thousands of cows that produce tons of manure.
