Mississippi State University officially broke ground today [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, hosted by the Jackson County Economic Development Foundation, or JCEDF, 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 facility and its strategic location are the result of dedicated teamwork between MSU and Jackson County entities, including the Jackson County board of supervisors, port authority and JCEDF, which recruited MSU to locate its coastal facility in Jackson County.
Mary Martha Henson, JCEDF deputy director, noted the facility will draw scientists from other research-intensive universities in the region to collaborate with MSU.
The center also will offer opportunities to work in close proximity to the distinctive assets and amenities the Mississippi Coast provides.
“We believe in creating relationships with our partners, going beyond recruiting to work together to ensure long-term success,” said Henson. “Working with a flagship university like Mississippi State will give Jackson County continued opportunities to diversify our economy and bring in high-skilled, high-paying jobs to support an industry that is an economic driver and an integral part of the Gulf Coast’s fabric.”
MSU is seeking funds to build phases two and three—a processing plant for aquatic foods research and development and a business incubator space.