Bia Diagnostics is advancing global food and cannabis testing while creating jobs for Vermonters
(Bia Diagnostics’ founders and leadership team from left: Jeffrey Laning, Robin Grace, Thom Grace, Hannah Grace, and Luke Emerson)
Right around the time the federal government began requiring food manufacturers to label major allergens such as soy, wheat and tree nuts, Thom Grace, founder and CEO of Bia Diagnostics, had an idea. Having worked in food testing for 15 years, he recognized that demand for validated testing was about to skyrocket and saw an opportunity to do things differently.
That was 2006. At the time, there was only one lab in the United States that specialized in food allergen testing, but results took a week or longer to turnaround. Thom felt certain he could do it in 24-hours and was confident that the market would be looking for faster turnaround times as the new regulations took effect. He pitched his daughter, Hannah, who had a background in chemistry and biology, on the idea of starting a business and, in January 2007, Bia Diagnostics was born.
They set up shop in a small building on North Winooski Avenue in Burlington. Vermont, scavenging lab equipment and furniture from nearby universities and purchasing the technology needed for the lab on eBay.
Profitable from day one, Thom had read the tea leaves correctly. The 24-hour turnaround time was indeed something the marketplace was looking for. “Customer service is primary and has been from the start,” said Thom, “It’s part of our ethos. We answer every email within 15 minutes and return every call immediately.” If a sample arrives at Bia Diagnostics by noon on a weekday, the customer has results by 6 p.m. that evening. “No one else was doing that,” said Thom.
Thom and Hannah ran the lab together, while Thom handled marketing and Hannah managed bookkeeping, filing, and the database systems. Samples from all over the United States, and from as far away as Tasmania, arrived daily for testing. Eventually they added a lab technician, and then another. “We were stepping all over each other in that first lab,” said Thom, “but every extra dollar we had went into boosting employee salary and benefits or investing in equipment. We needed more space to grow and to be able to add employees, but we had no extra money.”
“It was all Vermont”
Right around then, Curt Carter from the Greater Burlington Industrial Corporation (GBIC) knocked on their door–literally. “He just showed up and introduced himself,” said Robin Grace, Thom’s wife and Hannah’s mother, who had joined the family business.
“He asked us what we needed,” said Robin. “We were like, well, we see this potential for growth, but we don’t have the money. We had already taken out a second mortgage on our home to start the business and, although we were profitable from day one, we didn’t have the cash flow for a big move or expansion. Frank Cioffi, the president of GBIC, said, ‘Forget about that. Dream big. What is your ideal?’”
What the young, growing company needed most at that time was room to expand. Frank showed them a property in Colchester, an old police station that had been sitting idle. “It was awful,” said Robin, “but Frank went across the street and got an architect and said to us, ‘Tell him about your vision for this space.’”
Thom, Robin and Hannah worked with the architect for a month, outlining both technical specifications for their lab and refrigeration needs as well as their desire for a space filled with natural light where they could expand over time. Soon thereafter, in 2014, they signed a ten-year lease.
“They truly were our heroes,” said Robin, “and I don’t say that lightly. They came to us. We had no money. None. I mean, like literally. I don’t think we could have done this anywhere else but in Vermont.”
“None of the banks would talk to us,” she said, “but the Opportunities Credit Union took a chance and gave us a second mortgage to start the business. The Burlington Community & Economic Development Office came through with $10,000, and then GBIC came in and helped us get a loan from the Vermont Economic Development Authority for the new space. I mean it was all Vermont making it happen.”
A culture of innovation
With room to grow, the Bia team leaned into building their “three-legged stool”– food allergy testing for customers using both Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA) and Lateral Flow (LFD), validation to prove their methods were effective and repeatable, and innovation.
A majority of the company’s customers are based in the United States, with major brands including General Mills, Pepsico and Nestle among their roster.
“Having a national and international customer means we’re bringing dollars into the state and using those dollars to create good jobs for Vermonters,” said Luke Emerson, president of Bia Diagnostics. “It’s an important part of our culture. We want people who want to stay in Vermont to make a livable wage and have great benefits.”
The third leg of the stool, innovation, has allowed the company to develop new products and methodologies to better serve their customer. Among them, ELISA and LFD self-testing kits for food manufacturers to ensure against cross-contamination. After contacting several antibody manufacturers to determine what was most needed in the industry, they formed a partnership with a company willing to produce antibodies to Bia’s specifications, eventually forming a second company called Elution Technologies.
“The LFDs work just like a Covid test,” explained Luke. “The customer can swab their equipment and test for the presence of allergens within 10 minutes. It’s not sophisticated, they still send their food product to us for verification and analysis, but the LFD can tell them quickly if there is a potential problem.” Elution Technologies sold to 3M in 2017. Bia is currently developing a new allergen kit line under the name Avow Diagnostics with a new antibody manufacturer.
A culture of innovation also allowed Bia to move quickly into hemp and cannabis testing when the USDA Farm Bill legalized CBD hemp in 2018. “We saw it coming,” said Luke, “and set up the lab with different equipment. At first, we were getting maybe 30 samples of hemp or CBD products a month. As soon as the state legalized THC cannabis for retail sale, that went to 30-60 samples a day and became fifty percent of our business.”
The state of Vermont mandates testing pathogens like E. coli, pesticides, and heavy metals for public safety. “If it fails,” said Luke, “it doesn’t go to market so there is some reassurance to the end-user there.”
Keeping a pulse on regulation, paying attention to what customers want, and remaining agile are all core to the company’s strategic growth. “As a small company, we can adapt and innovate very quickly,” said Thom. “Big corporations are like the Queen Mary, it’s hard to turn in another direction.”
Most recently, the team has expanded into microbial testing for pathogens like listeria and salmonella in the manufacturing environment. “More and more, customers want a one-stop-shop for all their testing,” said Luke. “It was a big leap for us, but ultimately it’s another important set of testing that keeps food safe for consumers.”
“Thom has a hard time sitting still if there’s more to be done,” added Luke. “And there is always more to be done.”
Business for the community
Unlike some companies for whom growth is tied only to the bottom line, Bia Diagnostics has taken a different approach. Robin, who came to Bia from the nonprofit sector, had worked in early childhood and family violence prevention for most of her career. She saw an opportunity to bridge the gap between the business and nonprofit worlds. “It’s really about paying people properly and providing them with a livable wage and benefits,” she said. “That’s what is missing from the business mindset. I found my passion trying to connect business to the wellbeing of the broader community.”
Bia Diagnostics offers all employees a livable wage, full medical benefits, unlimited paid time off, tuition reimbursement, and time off to volunteer in the community. The company also brings in high school and college students through a robust internship program to teach them valuable job skills. “It’s a very trainable profession,” said Luke.
One of the only principals of the company not related by blood or marriage, Luke is living proof of the company’s commitment to its employees. He has been with Bia Diagnostics since 2010. A Vermonter with a degree in environmental chemistry, he was traveling after graduation but dreamed of returning to his home state. He ran into Hannah, who encouraged him to apply for a job at Bia. “My responsibilities grew with the company,” he said. “I didn’t necessarily see this as my career when I first ran into Hannah; I just needed a job. But now, on a day-to-day basis, I’m in the lab, I’m solving problems, I’m collaborating with partners outside of Vermont to bring more business and more jobs back home.”
About GBIC
The Greater Burlington Industrial Corporation helps solve problems with leading employers to create economic well-being for Vermonters. For more information: gbicvt.org.
