AMES, Iowa – Officials held a Sept. 8 ribbon-cutting ceremony for the grand opening of the Iowa State University KENT Corp. Feed Mill and Grain Science Complex, billed as a world-class, state-of-the-art facility.

The $21.2 million, 10-acre complex will include feed milling and mixing equipment, grain storage bins, grain drying and handling equipment, and a warehouse. KENT, a family owned company, gave the lead $8 million gift in 2017.

“The contribution celebrates a 100-year commitment to the success of generations of people engaged in livestock production and agriculture,” said Gage Kent, chair and CEO of KENT Corp., headquartered in Muscatine, Iowa. “KENT is proud to partner with those working to advance new technologies in the feed and grain markets.”

Other lead commitments included the Iowa Corn Promotion Board, which committed $4 million; Sukup Manufacturing Co., in Sheffield, Iowa, which committed $2 million of in-kind support; and California Pellet Mill in Waterloo, Iowa, had made a $2.6 million commitment.

“The feed, grain and livestock sectors are key to the success of agriculture in Iowa,” said Wendy Wintersteen, Iowa State president, and former College of Agriculture and Life Sciences dean. “As a top land-grant university, Iowa State is at the forefront of critical and cutting-edge research, education and extension programs that support these important sectors.

“The KENT Corp. Feed Mill and Grain Sciences Complex will provide the space, facilities, and technology to strengthen our ability to carry out our mission,” she added.

In September 2019, Iowa State broke ground to mark the start of construction of the site, located on 10 acres of university-owned land southwest of the intersection of Highway 30 and State Avenue in Ames.

The process of building the feed mill tower took four-and-a-half days, with two crews working 12-hours shifts, 24 hours a day, rain or shine, officials said. The main tower is more than 100 feet tall, and the front-end tower rises more than 44 feet.

Jon Sargent, president and CEO of Todd & Sargent in Ames, the general contractor and design builder for the facility, said every four minutes throughout those four-and-a-half days, hydraulic jacks buried inside the walls activated to raise the facility up, inch by inch. Anywhere from 12-15 inches of cement were poured each hour, while more than 100 tons of rebar were placed.

Daniel J. Robison, holder of the endowed dean’s chair in Iowa State’s College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, said, “The KENT Corp. Feed Mill and Grain Science Complex will be a world-class, state-of-the-art facility used by faculty and staff to prepare students, train industry professionals and conduct impactful research that will make Iowa State a recognized leader in support of the feed industry.”

The facility will also include a 100-foot-tall concrete milling tower, a 40-foot-tall pelleting plant, 220,000 bushels of steel grain storage with handling and drying systems, educational building with classroom, an analytical laboratory, and meeting spaces.

Mike Gauss, president of KENT Nutrition Group, said, “It is incredibly rewarding to have been part of this project because we at KENT Nutrition Group know it will provide an authentic, challenging and fun learning environment for students and industry professionals.

“This industry is intrinsically linked to our everyday lives; teaching that, in this real-world way, will be meaningful to all involved,” he added.

The new facility will centralize feed production close to the university’s animal agriculture teaching and research farms. The mill will have a capacity of approximately 20,000 tons of feed per year to meet needs of Iowa State University classes, tours, short courses, research diets, internships, small batches and rations for livestock and poultry.

According to officials, Iowa leads the nation in the amount of animal feed consumed at more than 21 million tons a year. The feed industry in the state represents more than $20 billion in sales. More than 58,000 jobs in Iowa are connected to the industry.

The 47,000-square-foot complex will prepare the next generation of workers in related technological advances in efficiency and safety, officials said.

“This complex is a hands-on platform to further advance innovation and sustainability for future leaders in feed and grain processing,” Kent said.