Solutions will be sought to improve the labor situation at the dairy. The department needs greater flexibility from administration to offer more competitive salaries when advertising open positions. A shortage of skilled, dependable employees at the DRU results in numerous problems. Faculty time and resources are diluted when they must directly or indirectly attend to basic animal care and management. New research facilities are desperately needed to carry out nationally competitive poultry research.
Current facilities are a hindrance.
A modern facility paralleling current industry standards is imperative to make research relevant. Coordinated research in nutrition, management, and disease would require an isolated facility which does not now exist at the University of Florida. New facilities could be built at the current Dairy Research Unit. The department has taken a leadership role for the Southeast region regarding regionalization efforts in dairy extension, research and teaching. This is expected to be the trend in the future.