The University of Idaho’s Center for Agriculture, Food and the Environment has received another boost in the form of a significant donation from Scoular.

The company is donating $500,000 to help fund the project, which includes the largest research dairy in the country that will focus on sustainability.

“Scoular is proud of our long history of partnering with the dairy industry as well as our commitment to ag innovation and sustainability,” Paul Maas, Scoular CEO, said in a press release on Tuesday.

“We are delighted to invest with the University of Idaho and others in this one-of-a-kind opportunity to develop the next generation of dairies,” he said

Scoular, headquartered in Nebraska, provides agricultural supply chain solutions worldwide and offers custom dairy feed solutions throughout its network.

Through the Scoular Foundation, the company is committed to giving back to the communities where its employees work and live. Scoular also has a robust sustainability strategy, in line with the university’s new investment.

“Scoular is honored to support the University of Idaho and our valuable dairy customers in this region,” Maas said.

The 2,000-cow research dairy and 640-acre demonstration farm will be in Rupert and include a commodity building that will recognize Scoular’s name in honor of the donation.

The initiative also includes a public outreach and education center in Jerome and collaborative food science efforts developed with the College of Southern Idaho in Twin Falls.

“The beauty of Idaho CAFE is the linkage between the research dairy and agronomic production, which makes us a unique facility in the U.S.,” said Michael Parrella, dean of the university’s College of Agricultural and Life Sciences.

“Scoular’s generous investment in this project helps to strengthen that connection and demonstrates the interdisciplinary nature of this cutting-edge research,” he said.

Construction of the research dairy is slated to be completed in 2023, with milking operations beginning at the $22.5 million farm in 2024.

Scoular has had a presence in Idaho for almost 25 years. It operates an office in Twin Falls, and a dairy feed blending facility in Jerome, along with grain elevators in southeast and eastern Idaho.

The company recently built a factory in Jerome that manufactures a sustainable barley protein concentrate for pet food and aquafeed. Last year, the company also launched a program in Idaho to expand barley as a sustainable row crop.