LGC boosts proficiency testing portfolio

LGC has acquired API Food Quality to boost its portfolio of proficiency testing (PT) schemes for the food industry. 

It will also create a North American hub for its PT operations in Traverse City, Michigan.

Proficiency testing is part of the laboratory accreditation process, alongside reference materials, enabling labs to monitor the quality of analytical results. 

API has PT programs for labs performing microbiology and chemistry analyses on food.

Standards Division push

LGC provides over 1,600 PT exercises per annum, distributed to more than 11,000 labs in 160 countries. LGC’s PT offering is certified to ISO 9001 and accredited to ISO/IEC 17043.

The private-equity backed company acquired BRC Global Standards at the end of last year.

BRC Global Standards was developed as part of the British Retail Consortium (BRC) which stays as a minority shareholder with a seat on the board.

LGC also acquired o2si smart solutions, a manufacturer of organic and inorganic reference materials, last year and added it to the Standards Division.

Euan O’Sullivan, managing director of LGC’s Standards Division, said the deal offers a complementary fit to existing global PT capabilities and creates a North American counterpart to existing PT locations in Bury, England and Johannesburg, South Africa. 

“Our combined business will have a food and beverage PT offering of unparalleled quality and breadth, while also providing an enhanced platform to introduce other LGC PT schemes to a North American customer base.”

Michigan operations

The American Proficiency Institute Group, made up of API Food Quality and LGC’s PT business in North America, will be led by Daniel C. Edson, co-founder and president of the American Proficiency Institute. 

Edson will continue as president of the American Proficiency Institute, Inc.

“By combining API Food Quality with LGC’s PT capabilities, we will be able to provide food industry customers with even more robust PT offerings,” he said. 

“We are pleased that Traverse City, Michigan will continue as a hub for this new combined operation, helping to ensure a smooth transition and expanding local jobs.”

API Food Quality offered the first accredited proficiency testing program for six non-O157 Shiga toxin-producing E. coli (STEC) adulterants.  It serves more than 1,000 food labs in 30 countries.

AsiaInspection completes acquisition of Produce Inspectors of America

Meanwhile, AsiaInspection (AI) has completed the acquisition of Produce Inspectors of America (PIA), a perishable food product inspection company.

PIA operates in North and Latin America, Europe and Asia on behalf of fresh produce farmers, traders, brands and retailers, and performs on-site inspections before and after shipment, to ensure quality and conformity of products.

The company, headquartered in Miami, USA and Santiago, Chile employs 400 people and does berry inspections.

PIA’s presence in Latin and North America increases AI’s footprint in the region, where it services clients with supplier audit programs, laboratory testing and product inspections.

"We are delighted to have joined a larger network that allows us to offer our clients a wider geographical coverage and increased quality control services, from lab testing to site audits,” said Edmundo Elissetche, PIA’s founder and president.

AI is a quality control and supplier compliance provider that partners with brands, retailers and importers to secure the supply chain.

It is headquartered in Hong Kong and has 20 offices with four in-house labs and 2,000 employees.

Sebastien Breteau, AsiaInspection’s founder and CEO, said PIA customers can benefit from AI’s quality control management software and coverage in 77 countries.

"This has been a strategic acquisition for AI, as PIA’s expertise on fresh produce complements our offering to the food industry, and PIA, much like AI, has put technology at the core of their operations to provide their customers with supply chain data intelligence."