OUR STORY BEGINS...
BIO-CAT’s Company Founding
On August 1st, 1988 Ed Schuler and his son, Chris Schuler, founded BIO-CAT, Inc., a wholesaler of enzymes and enzyme blends, in Keswick, Virginia. Along with their business associate, Brian Huffman, they worked out of Ed’s house and Brian’s barn. They started with one small 20-kilogram blender, a few exhaust fans to control dust and a small shed for warehousing and shipping. Their vision from the beginning was to provide exceptional customer service, highquality enzymes and same day or next day shipping services. Their goal was to make sure that their customers were always taken care of and satisfied. In fact, their first five customers are still with the company today!
BIO-CAT was one of the first wholesalers of dietary enzymes in the United States. They were the forerunners in developing formulas for use in digestive preparations. Over the years, they developed expertise in enzyme formulation and custom blending. BIO-CAT now offers an extensive range of products, from single-to multi-enzyme blends, serving various food, industrial, agricultural and commercial markets.
BIO-CAT’s First Building
BIO-CAT employees construct their first building in Louisa, Virginia. The building included multiple blending rooms with air handling systems, offices, and a small warehouse.
New Warehouse Expansion
BIO-CAT’s first expansion adds warehouse space and loading docks.
BIO-CAT’s First Advertisement
BIO-CAT features their first advertisement in Food Processing magazine.
New Facility in Troy, Virginia
BIO-CAT purchases and moves to its present 26-acre facility in Troy, Virginia. With six employees and three blenders, they renovate the building adding new offices, blending rooms, warehousing and lab space. Chris and Brian design and install some of the industry-first isolated powder-containment systems in each blending room.
BIO-CAT begins certifying products as Kosher by the Orthodox Union, while adhering to strict Kosher food laws, including cleanliness, purity and quality.
Setting Standards for Quality
Quality control testing is not a requirement for blended enzyme products and companies are listing units-per-gram without verification. BIO-CAT begins using the assays and unit definitions in the Food Chemical Codex (FCC), ultimately persuading customers in the dietary supplement industry to use these standards.
Doubling in Size & Reputation
BIO-CAT doubles in size to 15 employees and 8 blenders, including their first large capacity blender. They add 15,000 square feet of production and warehouse space. BIO-CAT also earned a reputation for safety and effectiveness and becomes the exclusive North American distributor for Genencor International’s (DuPont) specialty product line.
Celebrating 10 Years in Business
BIO-CAT celebrates 10 years in business! BIO-CAT also becomes the exclusive North American distributor for Genencor International’s (DuPont) cleaning product line.
40,000 Sq. Ft. Warehouse Addition
BIO-CAT begins constructing a 40,000 square foot addition of warehouse space that includes a 2,800 square foot refrigerated storage room.
Warehouse Addition Completed
Construction of the 40,000 square foot addition is complete.
Continuing to Grow and Expand
BIO-CAT grows to 24 employees and installs new front offices, a main lobby, a lunch room and a conference room.
Development of QA & QC Team
BIO-CAT establishes a Quality Assurance and Quality Control team and begins construction on a new 2,500 square foot, state-of-the-art Quality Control lab. BIO-CAT also registers as a food facility with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). BIO-CAT receives ISO 9001:2000 accreditation for consistently providing products that meet customer and applicable regulatory requirements.
BIO-CAT Microbials is Born
BIO-CAT installs a 2,100 square foot renovation of dedicated warehouse space. Chris Schuler acquires Advanced Microbial Systems and changes the name to BIO-CAT Microbials. This collaboration enables BIO-CAT to combine unique enzymes with bacillus fermentation products.
BIO-CAT Microbials is housed in a GMP certified facility in Shakopee, Minnesota, USA. Our teams are innovators in the field of biological solutions for a broad range of emerging and existing markets and industries. Our teams utilize the latest enzyme technology in combination with microbes to produce products that are pioneering, more effective and of the highest quality for our customers’ applications.
U.S. Patent 6,902,548
U.S. Patent 6,902,548 awarded to BIO-CAT for the extraction and use of a hyaluronidase enzyme from Streptomyces hyalurolyticus to aid in ophthalmic treatments. This bacterial enzyme has higher activity, specificity and purity than comparable animal-derived enzymes. BIO-CAT joins the American Feed Industry Association (AFIA) and Enzyme Technical Association (ETA).
Installation of Liquid Blending Tanks
BIO-CAT adds liquid enzymes and installs three liquid blending tanks.
Celebrating 20 Years in Business!
BIO-CAT celebrates 20 years in business! BIO-CAT forms Enzitech Laboratories (2008-2012), an independent third-party enzyme and microbial testing facility that provides quality control services for customers.
ISO 9001:2008 Accreditation
BIO-CAT receives ISO 9001:2008 accreditation.
Official Distributor for Amano Enzyme
BIO-CAT becomes the exclusive North American distributor of dietary supplement enzyme products for Amano Enzyme Inc., the world’s number one specialty enzyme manufacturer.
R&D Lab Development & More
BIO-CAT becomes the exclusive North American distributor of dietary supplement enzyme products for Nihon Chemical Co., one of the most unique enzyme producers in the world. BIO-CAT begins construction on a 6,800 square foot expansion dedicated to executive and sales offices and a state-of-the-art Research and Development lab. Construction is completed in 2012. U.S. Patent 8,071,089 awarded to BIO-CAT for their novel blend of enzymes to aid in the digestion of fats and other substances in the diet. It specifically helps people suffering from pancreatic insufficiency, cystic fibrosis and other similar ailments to obtain more nutrition from their food.
25 Years in Business
BIO-CAT celebrates 25 years in business and is featured in a full-page article in The Daily Progress.
BIO-CAT breaks ground on a 15,000 square foot expansion of production and warehouse space. Installation on a new customer service office is complete, and construction begins on a new main entrance and parking lot.
BIO-CAT initiates digestion studies with a leading U.S. university utilizing a stomach model to evaluate the impact of enzymes on digestive health. BIO-CAT becomes a member of the Council for Responsible Nutrition (CRN), the leading trade association representing dietary supplement and functional food manufacturers, and ingredient suppliers.
“Business Person of the Year” 2014
BIO-CAT completes their first clinical trial confirming the efficacy of their fungal lipase compositions from U.S. Patent 8,071,089 for the reduction of serum triacylglyceride levels in humans. Patients with high triacylglyceride levels experienced at least a 20% decrease in their triacylglyceride levels.
Ed Schuler, founder and CEO of BIO-CAT, is named “Business Person of the Year” by the Louisa County Chamber of Commerce. Ed credits his employees saying, “Over the years, BIO-CAT has had the good fortune to hire excellent people to run our operation.”
BIO-CAT establishes the ‘Brian M. Huffman Memorial Scholarship’ at Louisa County High School in remembrance of Brian Huffman, a former vice-president of operations and an instrumental asset to the company.
New Main Entrance / HAACP
Construction of the new main entrance and parking lot is complete. BIO-CAT implements the Hazard Analysis & Critical Control Point (HAACP) Management System, a recognized management system for reducing the risk of safety hazards in food.
FSSC 22000 (Food Safety System Certification)
BIO-CAT becomes a FSSC 22000 (Food Safety System Certification) certified company which is recognized by the Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI) and based on existing ISO standards. BIO-CAT is certified by the Islamic Food and Nutrition Council of America as HALAL for consumption.
Catalyzing Biotech Solutions™
BIO-CAT implements a new tagline, “Catalyzing Biotech Solutions™.” U.S. Patent 9,555,083 awarded to BIO-CAT for the oral administration of a novel lipase composition to reduce serum triacylglyceride levels in humans.
Celebrating 30 Years in Business
BIO-CAT celebrates 30 years in business! BIO-CAT installs two new blending rooms, one of which includes a massive 2,300-kilogram blender. BIO-CAT houses over 50 employees, 12 powder blenders, 3 liquid blenders, 2 state-of-the-art laboratories and continues to grow. For 30 years, they have dedicated their business to providing innovative support and custom formulations for every customer application. They are the largest supplier of enzymes and custom enzyme blends to the U.S. dietary supplement industry and the largest custom blender of enzymes in the United States.
TODAY
For 30 years, we have dedicated our business to providing customers with the very latest enzyme technology and custom formulations. Our extensive range of products, from single to multi enzyme blends, service various industrial and commercial markets. BIO-CAT is an FSSC 22000 certified facility featuring state-of-the-art laboratories for scientific research, product development and on-site quality testing to better serve customers.
