A new $2 million facility in Buffalo is set to help to help bring better products to kitchens across America.

Lactalis USA cut the ribbon on its new culinary and sensory institute on South Park Avenue.

The institute features commercial and residential kitchen spaces that will be used to expand menu and retail offerings using equipment found in restaurants and home kitchens. Additionally, the institute is a central location for sensory panels for quality assurance.

“The Culinary & Sensory Institute exemplifies our commitment to providing delicious, nutritious dairy products that resonate with the evolving tastes and demands of our consumers,” said Esteve Torrens, Lactalis USA CEO. “It allows us to monitor the quality and performance of products from across our U.S. portfolio and ensure their consistency. Our U.S. business has grown steadily since entering the market in 1980 and this institute helps fulfill a key aspect of our future growth strategy by continuing to drive improvement.”

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“Our institute maximizes the impact of our culinary sales operations by deepening our customer relationships,” added Jean-Luc Bruandet, president & CEO of Lactalis American Group, a division of Lactalis USA that oversees food service sales. “The Culinary & Sensory Institute allows us to work in collaboration with key partners to create recipes and collect feedback that will ensure our products fulfill their needs and expectations. It aligns with our vision to drive relevant dairy innovation to stay ahead of consumer trends and produce the highest quality products for our customers and consumers.”

Lactalis chefs will also create new recipes and concepts in the institute and further foster dairy product innovation. The company says that the site collects more than 700 million pounds of milk from about 150 local farms every year.