The Farm

The Chute Animal Nutrition Centre is a state-of-the-art feed preparation facility with capabilities for all animal species. The nutrition complex is capable of large and small batch mixing, ranging from 5 to 200 kilos and commercial-style pelleting of feeds. For this reason, the centre is an important support feature for research trials requiring short runs of specialized feed. It is equipped with increased biosecurity with one directional flow, classroom space, and exterior bins for feed delivery.

The Centre is named in honour of the late Dr. Harold Chute, a Class of ’44 alumnus, who was the most energetic proponent of the need for the facility and who is the largest single benefactor for the project. Dr. Chute was awarded an honourary degree in 1998, the Distinguished Alumnus Award in 1994, and the Honourary Associate Award in 1976.

The Fur Unit was initiated in 1984 as a teaching and research unit. The animal housing facilities include a pelter shed, as well as individual outside breeder pens for silver foxes and two traditional two-row sheds for mink. The unit also houses American Marten. An additional building, opened in 1989, includes a feed kitchen, metabolism rooms, a laboratory, and an office. A new, technologically advanced mink facility is being constructed to enhance research and development capability in the Canadian Centre for Fur Animal Research (CCFAR).

This is a $9.8 million facility where you can learn from and participate in research projects related to poultry—in areas ranging from elements of production, such as hatching, to value-added product processing. The facility boasts state-of-the-art environmental controls and computerized data collection to facilitate best-practice science.

Visit the Atlantic Poultry Research Centre's page for more information.

The Ruminant Animal Centre (RAC) is a teaching and research facility for ruminant animal production (ruminants have stomachs with four compartments that break down fibrous material like grass). The RAC has a classroom, a research lab and a computerized diet centre (for animals, not students). As well, the RAC houses our cows plus multiple groups of sheep for research and teaching.

The Sheep Barn

The original sheep barn was constructed in 1969 and is open to the south. The facility has since expanded with the addition of a heated lambing area, enclosed handling system and hay storage. The Faculty of Agriculture has a flock of 100 purebred ewes consisting of Rideau Arcotts, Texels and Karakuls.

The feed processing plant is a key component of the Faculty of Agriculture’s research and teaching farm. Materials handling capabilities include grinding, extrusion and rolling of raw materials. Micro-ingredient mixing through to macro-ingredient mixing of complete rations-research and production- for the various livestock species on the farm is done in this facility.

The feed processing plant includes a computerized horizontal mixer, multiple bulk bins, a mezzanine for storage and access to equipment and a pre-mix room. Plans are currently being finalized for the addition of a small batch mixing room, a steam pelleter, an operator station and increased storage area.

The machinery shed is the centre of crop management, and provides machinery, seed and fertilizer storage. The shed also offers facilities for machinery repair and maintenance.

The manure storage building was constructed in the late 1970s to hold manure from the dairy and beef barns. It uses modern principles to conserve as many of the nutrients as possible, and is an important part of the campus pollution control effort and cropping program.