AgBioResearch

Ben Darling is responsible for working with MSU AgBioResearch leadership to define short- and long-term strategies for effective operations, management and maintenance from research facilities around the state.

Darling will work with each research center, collaborating with faculty, staff and industry stakeholders to lay the groundwork for innovative research to take place. 

Prior to joining MSU AgBioResearch, Darling was most recently the assistant director of the MSU Land Management Office (LMO), handling agricultural construction and related infrastructure projects at the south campus farms and off-campus research centers. 

Darling led several notable projects while at LMO. He was an integral part in bringing the Agricultural Education Center to the Saginaw Valley Research and Extension Center in Frankenmuth, Mich., in 2016. The center hosts industry meetings, workshops, trainings and other community outreach events. 

Starting in 2013, Darling oversaw construction and operation of the anaerobic digester on MSU’s south campus. The anaerobic digester reuses waste from campus farms and dining halls to generate energy. 

Darling has been around MSU for most of his life. His father, Bary Darling, was the university farms manager for more than 40 years. Darling attended MSU and graduated with a degree in agricultural engineering.