McCarthy Completes Work on USDA Food Safety and Inspection Lab
Date Posted: August 14, 2025
Posted In: Projects,
McCarthy Building Companies, Inc., has joined the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) to announce the completion of the Midwestern Laboratory in St. Louis.
Following the installation of laboratory equipment in July, the facility is set to open shortly.
The 84,000-square-foot, single-story, state-of-the-art facility was designed by Hoefer Welker. It was developed in close collaboration with the agency. Focus was placed on ensuring operational efficiencies, sustainable practices and the integration of the most advanced scientific technologies to address both current and future food safety challenges.
Supporting Farm-To-Table Strategies
The lab is located in the northwest region of the St. Louis metro area and near the University of Missouri – St. Louis campus. It includes microbiology and chemistry labs, processing center, large receiving area, and adjacent sample prep laboratory. The new lab will coordinate and conduct laboratory services in support of the agency’s farm-to-table strategies for food safety in meat, poultry, fish and egg products.
It will be home to approximately 60 employees across three branches:
- Administration: Overseeing testing, quality control, procurement, and safety
- Chemistry: Conducting analyses for veterinary drugs and environmental contaminants
- Microbiology: Performing testing for foodborne pathogens, including Salmonella, the top seven E. coli STEC strains, Listeria monocytogenes, Campylobacter species, and sanitary indicators. The lab will also conduct whole genome DNA sequencing on positive isolates.
Shared Purpose of Construction Team
“Delivering a facility that enables FSIS to fulfill its vital public health mission is a point of pride for our experienced science and technology team,” said Josh Gaghen, vice president and St. Louis Business Unit Leader for McCarthy’s Central Region. “This laboratory reflects not only the importance of food safety in our daily lives but also what’s possible when experts in construction, design and science collaborate with a shared purpose.”
GSA executed a 20-year lease with US Federal Properties for a total contract value of $115.54 million. Construction began in May 2023 and concluded on schedule.
GSA provides centralized procurement and shared services for the federal government. It manages a nationwide real estate portfolio of nearly 370 million rentable square feet. The Food Safety and Inspection Service is the public health regulatory agency within the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). It is responsible for ensuring that domestic and imported meat, poultry, and egg products are safe, wholesome, and properly labeled. McCarthy Building Companies, Inc. (McCarthy) is the oldest privately held national construction company in America.