<body><div><figure><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=2yDX7Y_0zbeuJDo00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=2yDX7Y_0zbeuJDo00" width="750" height="365" ></figure>The Gazebo GazetteMISSISSIPPI GULF COAST (GG) — Mississippi State University officially broke ground Monday, March 10 on the Northern Gulf Aquatic Food Research Center, a first-of-its kind facility in Mississippi dedicated to aquatic food safety, quality assessment, processing and product development.The ceremony recognized more than five years of collaborative work with MSU on the multimillion-dollar facility. Construction of the Mississippi Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station, or MAFES, research center is a combined investment of $3 million from the federal RESTORE Act and $865,000 from the Gulf of Mexico Energy Security Act, or GOMESA, as well as $4 million from the state to cover fixed equipment including walk-in coolers and freezers and fume hoods for the laboratory.“Mississippi State University is uniquely charged with serving the entire state of Mississippi, and we are very proud of the work we are doing on the Coast,” MSU President Mark E. Keenum said. “We are grateful for the investments and the outstanding partners who have made the Northern Gulf Aquatic Food Research Center possible. It’s a great example of what we can accomplish by working together to sustain and grow economic opportunities in our state and nation while being good stewards of our abundant natural resources.”With the seafood industry contributing over $300 million annually to the state economy, the new research center will help Mississippi meet a critical need for one of its largest industries. It also will help the state’s catfish producers, who manage 29,900 freshwater pond acres, with a total production value of $214 million in 2024.The first of three planned structures, the building will house a biosafety laboratory for testing pathogens and toxins and an analytical chemistry lab for measuring chemical residues in water and aquatic food products such as seafood and catfish. The lab will facilitate research on new processing methods to extend shelf life—reducing waste—and offer new value-added food products and processing techniques using locally produced aquatic foods that often leave the state for value-added processing elsewhere.“A major limiting factor for aquatic foods safety testing here in Mississippi is that no such facility is available, so our local processors have to send samples as far away as Galveston, Texas,” said James Henderson, professor and head of MSU’s Coastal Research and Extension Center. “This new facility will allow us to expedite that process.”The research center will be located at the Sunplex Light Industrial Complex on Highway 57, near the Interstate 10 corridor. The center also will offer opportunities to work in close proximity to the distinctive assets and amenities the Mississippi Coast provides.Mississippi State University is seeking funds to build phases two and three—a processing plant for aquatic foods research and development and a business incubator space. For more information about the Mississippi Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station, visit www.mafes.msstate.edu.Front Photo: Representatives from Mississippi State University, Jackson County Economic Development Authority, Jackson County Board of Supervisors, Mississippi Senators and Representatives, and Jackson County Port Authority were on hand Monday [March 10] to celebrate the groundbreaking of the Northern Gulf Aquatic Food Research Center. A first-of-its kind facility in Mississippi, the center will contribute to aquatic food safety through quality assessment, processing and product development. (Photo by Dominique Belcher)</div></body>

Block Source: thegazebogazette.com

Misinformation

Clickbait

Old or repetitive news

Explicit content

Location not relevant

MISSISSIPPI GULF COAST (GG) — Mississippi State University officially broke ground Monday, March 10 on the Northern Gulf Aquatic Food Research Center, a first-of-its kind facility in Mississippi dedicated to aquatic food safety, quality assessment, processing and product development. The ceremony recognized more than five years of collaborative work...

MSU Breaks Ground on Seafood Testing Facility

NewsBreak

MISSISSIPPI GULF COAST (GG) — Mississippi State University officially broke ground Monday, March 10 on the Northern Gulf Aquatic Food Research Center, a fi

MSU Breaks Ground on Seafood Testing Facility

Comments / 1