New Western Star Facility connects agriculture, food, innovation
Updated: 6 days ago
After President Richard Linton’s State of Our University address on Friday, Sept. 18, the College of Agriculture at Kansas State University held a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the new Western Star Global Grain and Food Center.
The $130 million, 178,000-square-foot project is the new home for baking science, milling science, grain science, and other areas of agriculture.
While the vision for the project had been in place for years, university and state leaders worked to turn that vision into reality.
“The idea existed for a long period of time, long before I came to Kansas State University. When I first came to Kansas State University, the Kansas Board of Regents wanted me to explore the opportunity to build the agricultural innovation initiative,” Linton said. “It was one of their main goals.”
Taelor Goff, a junior in milling science, is excited for the opening of this new building.
“It’s a really nice upgrade from Shellenberger Hall,” Goff said. “The new spaces and all the new amenities that go with the new building help tie all of the agricultural and food science together.”
The new amenities include bake labs, test kitchens, tucked away study spaces, and more.
Chase Nagel, a junior dual-majoring in bakery science and management and medical science and management, is looking forward to seeing how the opportunities the new facility brings connect to her future career.
“One of those opportunities,” Nagel said, “is the connected conference room and two subsection classrooms.”
“It's a great interview prep place for anyone in our major. Students can go there, prepare for interviews, go through mock interviews, and it’s also where we're having our interviews hosted,” she added. “It creates an available space for people to have these interviews.”
What sets this building apart from others on campus is its industry-level baking and milling labs and large-scale food processing labs.
“The large-scale food processing labs I think are very unique. A lot of the products that are made here are also sold on campus or at least they will be over here in the 1863 marketplace,” Addison Brandau, a senior and dual-major in food science and bakery science, said.
As the facility begins its first semester, students are looking forward to seeing how it will shape the future of agricultural programs at K-State.
“I'm excited for all the new people that we're going to gain from having this new building. We're getting more people into agriculture majors, which is great,” Rose Latta, a junior in milling science and management, said. “I'm excited for the future and to have our class sizes grow.”
The new facility sounds like a great step for K-State, especially with the focus on hands-on agriculture and food science. The industry-level labs seem really useful for students—nice read while taking a quick break with space waves.