Cavendish Farms and the Culinary Institute announce Canada's 'smartest kitchen'

French-fries manufacturer Cavendish Farms and The Culinary Institute of Canada are teaming up to build a new research kitchen in Charlottetown.

The $4-million kitchen will use the culinary resources of the institute and the market expertise of Cavendish Farms to create new products. The kitchen is being built with the support of both ACOA and the P.E.I. government.

P.E.I. Innovation Minister Richard Brown said the involvement of Cavendish Farms, a subsidiary of Irving, is what sold the province on the project.

They're calling it Canada's smartest kitchen, and one of its goals will be to improve the image of processed foods.

"In today's business world, innovation is critical to any company's success,"said Robert Irving of Cavendish Farms.

"For us to be able to develop new potato products for Cavendish Farms with the culinary institute students and chefs here, we think it was a great idea. We're very pleased to be part of it."

Cavendish Farms is putting $1 million into the project.