This fall marks five years since the completion of the Meat Science and Animal Biologics Discovery (MSABD) building on the western edge of the CALS campus. This state-of-the-art facility hosts the next generation of research which began at UW–Madison in the 1930s.

The building serves as a bridge between industry and the university, hosting more than 2700 visitors, 200 guest speakers and 50 training programs since fall 2021. It is also home to Bucky’s Varsity Meats, a retail location that conducts around 10,000 sales transactions per year and gives consumers access to high quality meat products – including some cuts that may be new to them.

The MSABD facility, as well as the faculty, staff, and students working in the building, are part of the Department of Animal and Dairy Sciences (ADS), which is now the second largest department in CALS. Recently, the MSABD group undertook a strategic planning exercise to explore how to increase efficiency and strengthen the group’s affiliation with the department. The findings are being used as a guide for action.

“The strategic planning process, which was facilitated by the Office of Strategic Consulting at UW-Madison, provided the framework for our MSABD team to evaluate our current progress, establish detailed goals for the future, and create a roadmap to help us achieve those goals in the coming months to years,” said Sara Gragg, current chair of the animal and dairy sciences department, who co-led the strategic planning process.

The strategic planning group, which included MSABD-connected faculty and staff, identified several key goals: providing excellent education and training; leading in animal biologics research; developing a signature retail brand through Bucky’s Varsity Meats; optimizing facility operations and achieving financial stability; and increasing and maintaining stakeholder visibility. They then assessed progress made in these areas and determined that, five-years in, MSABD is in strong shape, with significant advances made in research, instruction and outreach.

The facility is used as part of research agreements with more than 30 outside companies annually, and attracted $400,000 in sponsored research in 2024. Two patent disclosures have been filed by researchers working in the building, and more than 60 graduate and undergraduate students have been engaged with research in the building.

MSABD’s two main areas of focus – animal biologics and meat science – are well represented in the ADS curriculum. The fundamentals of animal biologics are presented in core courses such as Introduction to Animal Sciences, a large lecture course, and Grand Challenges and Career Opportunities in Animal and Dairy Sciences. Meat science is well represented in course offerings through Introduction to Meat Science and Technology, Animal Growth and Development, Intro to Culinary Meat Science, Commercial Meat Processing and Poultry Products Technology. Recently, generous donors established the Kauffman Experiential Learning Fund to support out-of-classroom learning opportunities to honor the legacy of the beloved professor Bob Kauffman, expanding the number of students that can be trained.

Overall, the strategic planning group found that MSABD experienced a successful launch and is on a positive trajectory. Many thanks go to Steven Ricke, who joined the ADS faculty in 2020 to direct the launch of the MSABD facility. Ricke continues to serve as a senior faculty member in the department, leading an internationally recognized food safety research program.

Looking forward to the next five years, all signs point to a bright future for animal biologics and meat science within the Department of Animal and Dairy Sciences. To learn more about the MSABD building, check out https://go.wisc.edu/andysci_msabd or stop by Bucky’s Varsity Meats, which is open Monday through Friday, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.

This article was posted in News.