Tyson Foods Inc. on Tuesday donated $1.3 million to the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture to modernize the school’s agricultural research and extension center in Fayetteville. The grant came as the division marked the 20th anniversary of its Center of Excellence for Poultry Science, housed in a building named for Tyson Foods founder John Tyson.
The grant includes $300,000 to renovate the division’s Pilot Processing Plant, adding stadium seating and a pilot test kitchen for research. Another $200,000 will go to building an education center where students can learn about Arkansas’ history of poultry production and research.
The award from Tyson is a matching gift with a challenge to the poultry and allied poultry industries to match the initial gift dollar for dollar, according to a statement from the university’s cooperative extension service. Arkansas-based George’s Inc. and Simmons Foods Inc. each contributed an additional $100,000 to fund the research facility.
“The poultry science program at the University of Arkansas wouldn’t be what it is today without the commitment of the University of Arkansas, the faculty who’ve spent countless hours introducting new opportunities and challenges for their students, and the myriad of folks in the industry and community,” said Tyson Foods Chairman John Tyson. “It’s an outstanding facility that’s helped shape leaders in the poultry industry and will continue to do so for years to come.”
