Infrastructure and Capacity

The Brookdale Farm is located 11 miles North of Brandon, at the corner of Highway #10 and Provincial Road (Hwy) 353. It is a 640-acre section of land (31-12-18W) owned by Ducks Unlimited Canada. Approximately 253 acres are wetlands, and the remaining 387 acres are used for pasture, hay, and cropland.

The 10-acre yard site is home to our MBFI Learning Centre, which is available as a multi-functional facility to host agriculture extension and outreach events year-round. It includes indoor and outdoor classroom areas, washrooms, a full kitchen, and a patio. The yard includes a large parking lot with an upgraded driveway and additional upgrades to field roads that allow for year-round access to each field and pasture – perfect for extension events.

The farm out-buildings include a pole shed (42’ x 80’) that consists of our heated workshop and office (42’ x 40’). The farm site is also home to a livestock handling facility (42’ x 40’), a canvas Quonset (30’ x 100’), and a lean-to style pole shed (20’ x 40’) that provide additional storage. 

Our field and pasture infrastructure includes a four-strand barbed perimeter fence with single strand electric cross fencing and an extensive solar summer watering system that covers ¾ of the land base and services dozens of watering points. The winter watering systems are fed from our dugout or municipal water service, with examples of a solar powered crib systems as well as traditional winter waterers.

Our livestock handling equipment includes both a Real Industries stationary chute system within our livestock handling centre, and a Real Industries portable handling system for use in the pastures. The livestock handling facility area has a flexible design, allowing it to be easily converted to new configurations as needed for our research and demonstration projects.

MBFI also has numerous portable panels, wind breaks, and full suite of beef operation field equipment. The farmyard is also serviced with a Wi-Fi service, cell phone booster, and a monitored security system.