A fire at the Moorepark, Fermoy, Co Cork processing facility, which is jointly run by Teagasc and Irish co-operatives, has caused thousands of pounds worth of damage.
The fire at the technology plant, where research in recent years has produced more than 100 new dairy products, was spotted on Saturday evening.
It was quickly brought under control, and while there was slight structural damage, the main damage was caused by smoke.
A Teagasc spokesman said he expected the centre to be back in operation within a few weeks. He did not think there would be any major disruption of the research being carried on there.