The Kansas State University Dairy Teaching and Research Center (DTRC) announced in June it will be restructuring its cow herd and management strategy.

According to Mike Day, the Kansas State Department of Animal Sciences and Industry department head, this temporary herd reduction will be the first step toward replacing the aging facilities at the research farm north of campus in Manhattan, Kan.

“The challenging labor situations found across the country are no different for K-State, and the aging facility exacerbates this situation,” explained Billy Brown, K-State assistant professor. “We have carefully considered how many cows we need to maintain, in the short term, to optimize cow care and facilities while providing high-quality knowledge in the form of research, teaching and Extension activities.”

“Our DTRC produces benefits beyond milk, such as the next generation of dairy leaders and highly impactful research and outreach activities,” added Victor Gomez León, K-State dairy Extension specialist. “In the short-term, reducing the herd number would be the most sustainable decision to continue providing those opportunities and services during a period of labor shortage in these aging facilities. A state-of-the-art facility with cutting-edge technology would help ensure that we conduct teaching, research and Extension efforts that are up to modern dairy industry standards for decades into the future.”

The department also announced that this summer Mike Brouk, K-State professor and Extension dairy specialist, will be transferring his faculty coordinator responsibilities of the DTRC to Brown and fellow Gomez León. Brown and Gomez León will jointly supervise the day-to-day operations of the DTRC.

“Despite the challenges, Dr. Brouk has gone above and beyond his impactful Extension, research and teaching contributions to ensure that the DTRC fulfilled its role in our teaching, research and Extension missions for the past two years,” Day said. “Many thanks to Mike for his dedication and commitment to the department and DTRC.”

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The Kansas State University Department of Animal Sciences and Industry and Kansas Dairy contributed to this article.