The UBC Dairy Centre is operated both as a typical modern dairy farm and as an intensive dairy cattle research centre. Approximately 230 cows are milked each day. Milk and animal sales cover the costs of the Centre’s day-to-day farming operations. The herd of approximately 500 animals is large enough to provide an adequate number of research animals to meet the Centre’s scientist’s increasing teaching and research requirements.
During the past 10 years UBC has replaced all the old AAFC experimental dairy cattle buildings on the site with new buildings containing state-of-the-art animal research equipment. In 2009 UBC completed construction of a new building containing student offices, laboratories and a conference room. UBC is currently seeking funds to equip the laboratories and to replace and enlargen old on-site student housing.