The Institute’s campus covers an area of about 20 hectares and includes a wide range of buildings to meet the needs of all activities on the site. Yanco Agricultural Institute has extensive modern facilities for research and education.

Research facilities

• Main laboratory building — houses entomologists, cereal chemists and plant pathologists, and incorporates controlled-temperature rooms, microscopy areas. Instrumentation available in the facility supports gas chromatography, high-performance liquid chromatography, differential scanning calorimetry, polymerase chain reaction studies on rice DNA, and rice viscosity studies.
• National Vegetable Industry Centre — laboratory area.
• Rice breeding and physiology laboratories — situated in the Kulu building.
• Six-bay controlled temperature glasshouse.
  

  The new rice breeding glasshouse at Yanco Agricultural Institute, commissioned in 2006. Photo: Mark Stevens
• Five air-conditioned polyhouses.
• New purpose-built glasshouse — for use by the rice breeding program.
• Soils laboratory — to be refurbished for use by the Department of Natural Resources as a soils testing facility by mid 2007. 
• Office and workroom facilities for research staff — situated in the Kulu and Pelde buildings.

Education and conference facilities

• Murrumbidgee Rural Studies Centre (MRSC)— offers quality short courses to primary producers and small farm owners. Houses all the MRSC staff and most of the advisory and regulatory staff.
• Conference and seminar rooms at MRSC — available for training, meeting and conference purposes.
• 'Amaroo' motel units — available for short-stay accommodation for course and conference participants.

Teaching laboratory in the Food Industry Training Centre. Photo: Mark Stevens

• Bunkhouse-style shared accommodation — available in Calrose and Inga buildings, which form part of the main quadrangle.
• Food Industry Training Centre — has research and teaching laboratories, offices, a seminar room, and a large air-conditioned food-processing area.
• Swimming pool and tennis court — available for the use of course participants.

Resources

• Library — provides information sources for research and is the core library for the south-western area of the state for NSW DPI offices and staff.
• Publications Unit — produces course materials.

Farming activities

Farming activities at the Institute and at Leeton Field Station are aimed towards providing high quality resources for field research. When areas are not required for research, commercial farming is conducted to provide income to maintain and improve the resources of the farms. A full farming plant is maintained and has been steadily upgraded over the last 10 years.

Typical crops grown include wheat, oats, and barley, and lucerne-based pastures are maintained between cropping phases. Wool, prime lambs, and cattle suitable for feedlot entry are the mainstays of the livestock enterprises. These can be utilised, or numbers/types adjusted at any time to suit any required research activities.