Ä¢¹½´«Ã½

Success has carried over from one year to the next for the Ä¢¹½´«Ã½ Livestock Judging program. Last year’s team had a successful run, and this year’s team is continuing that momentum as members move through their competition schedule.

Integrated livestock systems, variety trial results and breeding program updates are just some of the topics that will be covered during the 2026 South Dakota Agricultural Experiment Station field days presented by the Ä¢¹½´«Ã½ College of Agriculture, Food and Environmental Sciences. Events will be happening at locations across the state from June to mid-September, with each one focusing on local topics of interest.

Although SDSU has been recognized as a leader in precision agriculture, a faculty member in the Department of Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering noticed a gap in precision technology coursework related to livestock. This gap prompted Dick and Jeune Nicolai's gift to the university.

The Ä¢¹½´«Ã½ Soil Judging Team returned from the National Collegiate Soils Contest in Raleigh, North Carolina, with strong results. Competing against 28 universities and more than 300 students to properly identify and characterize regional soils, SDSU secured a 20th overall finish and a 14th-place ranking in the team judging category.

Tong Wang, associate professor in Ä¢¹½´«Ã½'s Ness School of Management and Economics and Extension specialist, was awarded the 2026 F.O. Butler Award for Excellence in Ä¢¹½´«Ã½ at the annual Celebration of Faculty Excellence.

The concept of knowing what the customer wants before plunging headfirst into a business venture can be applied to any industry, including agriculture. In fact, Great Plains I-Corps is beginning an eight-session program in August for teams that are developing agriculture or ag-related technologies. It is dubbed Great Plains I-Corps: Ag45 because teams will conduct 45 customer discovery interviews, engaging directly with stakeholders across the agriculture ecosystem to test and refine their assumptions. Six of the eight sessions are virtual with two sessions and two conferences in Fargo. Orientation (Aug. 13) and the next four three-hour sessions are virtual. In-person sessions are Sept. 15 and 18, sandwiching the Big Iron Farm and Construction Show Sept. 16 and the Autonomous Nation conference Sept. 17. The last session is Sept. 24.

The Ä¢¹½´«Ã½ Department of Animal Science hosted its annual Celebration of Animal Science Achievements and Excellence on April 23 at McCrory Gardens.

Isabel Dalton, a graduate student from the Ä¢¹½´«Ã½ Department of Natural Resource Management, has been accepted into the National Science Foundation Graduate Ä¢¹½´«Ã½ Fellowship Program.

The Ä¢¹½´«Ã½ College of Agriculture, Food and Environmental Sciences will soon have an endowed position focused on swine production. The Rick Wahlstrom Endowed Chair in Swine Production will help support a faculty member whose research and leadership will elevate scholarly research productivity and advance teaching efforts within swine production at SDSU.

Bel Brands USA is making a major investment in Brookings, committing $200 million to expand its facility and double production of its iconic Babybel cheese. Production is increasing from about 1.5 million to 3 million cheeses per day — all made in Brookings, the only facility supplying Babybel cheese in the United States.