About Botanacor Laboratories

We’re Botanacor

Leading the hemp industry in consistent and accurate laboratory testing

A message from our CEO

On behalf of the elite scientific team we’ve assembled at Botanacor, I want you to know how deeply we value our partnership with you.

At Botanacor, we’ve worked diligently for years to validate our facilities, equipment, and processes, all in an effort to set the highest benchmark for hemp and CBD product testing in North America. Our reputation as the hemp industry’s top lab is well-earned, and we fiercely defend it every day, with every sample we inbound, and every sample report to send back to you.

Our entire team is well aware that your business is dependent on timely and accurate tests. However, there’s something greater at stake here… the safety of your product’s end-users. It only underscores how critical it is for Botanacor to welcome you not just as a customer, but as a partner who shares our concern for the safety, purity, and predictability of cannabis products. Today, this industry is just starting to attain long-overdue legitimacy, and Botanacor is honored to humbly contribute to the process. Thanks for partnering with us on this journey.

Thank you,

Carl Craig Ph.D

Our leadership team

Carl Craig Ph.D

CEO

Carl’s long career has been keenly focused on providing accurate, reliable and defensible laboratory testing data to assist in decision making within the environmental, life science, drug manufacturing and clinical industries. He brings an international reputation to his role for creating value at the intersection of science and business operations. Carl received his Ph.D. in Chemistry from Cal Santa Barbara, with a post-doctoral fellowship at Cal Berkeley. Previous to Agricor and Botanacor, Carl was Corporate VP and C.O.O. for Microbial Solutions at Charles River Laboratories; President of Environmental Resource Associates; and founder/ GM of Pharmaceutical Resource Associates. A scientist and chemist to his core, Carl also brings his remarkable ability to grow businesses across borders and cultures to his leadership role at Agricor and Botanacor.

Mike Branvold

President

Mike began his Research & Development career in 1993 with Geneva Pharmaceuticals, now a Novartis company. He graduated from Colorado State University with a B.S. in Microbiology in 1995. For over a decade Mike worked primarily in Pharmaceutical R&D, developing and validating stability indicating methods for a variety of delivery platforms including; solid oral dosage, sterile injectables, otic solutions, and ophthalmic solutions. In 2005, Mike launched a laboratory validation company, serving primarily the Pharmaceutical industry, focusing on analytical instrumentation and process controls. Agilent Technologies, the world’s largest instrument manufacturer sought out Mike’s validation business in partnership as an Authorized Service Provider. The business grew to 27 people and was later sold to a publicly traded equipment calibration/validation company.

In 2014, Mike and business partners started Agricor Laboratories to support the Colorado licensed marijuana program at the onset of the first required testing program developed in the United States. Also in 2014, Mike and business partners started Botanacor Laboratories to support the Industrial Hemp businesses, where Botanacor participated in the first Hemp Pilot Program designed in the United States.

Chris Jungling

Executive Vice President

Chris Junghling brings an abundance of experience to Agricor Laboratories starting with his B.S. in chemistry obtained in 2004. He began his professional career as chemist at a major pharmaceutical company focusing on the consumer health products and generics market. There he built his compliance foundation on the systems, practices, and procedures that were put in place to maintain control and consistency to ensure consumer safety. Utilizing these core principles, Chris transitioned to a compliance service company in 2009 where he serviced many regulated industries with the main focus being on HPLC and GC technology. In 2014 Chris and his business partners established Agricor Laboratories to bring their experience and expertise to the cannabis industry. Also in 2014, Chris and business partners started Botanacor Laboratories to support the Industrial Hemp businesses, where Botanacor participated in the first Hemp Pilot Program designed in the United States. He is dedicated to the focus of Agricor and Botanacor to establish a strong baseline in cannabis testing based on proven models to protect customers, consumers, and the legitimacy of the industry.

Courtney Richards

Laboratory Manager

Courtney brings extraordinary Quality Control (QC) and Quality Assurance (QA) experience to Agricor and Botanacor, with many years in senior roles within the pharmaceuticals industry. Previously working at Novartis and Sandoz Pharmaceuticals, Courtney has served as Manager QC Finished Products, and lead QC teams that conducted testing of finished products for stability, release, and method transfers. With a BS in Biochemistry & Molecular Biology from University of Colorado, Boulder, her skills are wide-ranging, and they include Good Laboratory Practice (GLP), data analysis, and pharmaceutical sciences, as well as a deep knowledge of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

Greg Zimpfer

Quality Manager

Greg’s brings nearly a decade of highly developed data analysis and analytical chemistry to Agricor and Botanacor, where he now serves as Quality Manager. In addition to Greg’s analytical expertise, his widely recognized science skills also include a wide range of microbial techniques, root cause analysis, and Lean Sigma 6 experience. With a BS in Microbiology from Colorado State University, Greg was previously a Chemist & Microbiologist at Sandoz Pharmaceuticals and a microbial lab tech at Infinity Laboratories. Greg’s analytical method validation abilities are an ideal match for Agricor and Botanacor, given that the companies’ central identity is built on validated equipment, facilities, and processes.

Sarah Henning

Microbiology Supervisor

Sarah brings experience in pharmaceutical Microbiology and Biological Science to her role as Microbiology Supervisor at Agricor and Botanacor. Her years working as a Microbiologist in regulated environments, in combination with her experience in managerial roles, allowed Sarah to quickly work her way up from Microbiologist to Microbiology Supervisor. Sarah has a B.S. in Biological Science and a B.S. in Health & Exercise Science from Colorado State University in Fort Collins. Since she moved to Denver with her two dogs, Sarah has continued to enjoy the outdoor lifestyle that Colorado has to offer. Some of her favorite activities include camping, paddle boarding, climbing, and playing volleyball.

Samantha Smith

Analytical Supervisor

Samantha’s proficiencies are wide-ranging, including her skill for preparing and running product samples for potency, residual solvents, and pesticides testing. “Sam” is also expert at setting up, running, and maintaining high-performance liquid chromatography, gas chromatography / mass spectrometry, and liquid chromatography with tandem mass spectrometry. Sam graduated from the Colorado School of Mines with a BS in Chemistry and Biochemistry, and she worked at Sandoz testing pharmaceutical products, within strict FDA and DEA regulations and guidelines. She was also on the research staff at the Colorado School Of Mines Chemistry Department, where she focused on testing heavy metal toxicity.

Our CORe values

At Botanacor, our belief system defines our culture and the choices we make every day.

Down to our COR, we are:

Courageous: Venturing into new and uncharted industries.
Curious: To discover and develop better scientific processes.
Optimistic: About the future, the industries and our company’s growth.
Organized: With unwavering dedication to laboratory processes.
Respectful: Of every employee’s impact and contribution.
Responsible: For the health and safety of the people who use the products we test.