About The Company

Company History

BTSafety, a private LLC, was incorporated in 2003 with the purpose of developing software systems to help government and the food industry plan for and react to the consequences of accidental introduction of pathogens, allergens or other deleterious contaminants or the intentional introduction of biological, chemical, or radiologic agents into the food supply with the express aim of minimizing the impact of the event.

Following the events of 9/11, Jeff Sholl, Ph.D., exclusive licensor of the Green Giant brand for fresh fruits and vegetables in North America, became concerned about the human health consequences of a possible intentional contamination of fresh produce with a bioterrorism agent at some vulnerable point in the distribution chain.  He created a prototype version of a “farm to grave” consequence management system that depicted in real time the movement of theoretically contaminated lettuce, potatoes and onions from the farm through distribution channels to the consumer’s home.  Further, the model took into account the onset of symptoms, public health recognition and response, and the ultimate outcome in terms of number of people ill or dead.  Although the original prototype was developed to model food bioterrorism events, the architecture is equally applicable to conventional food safety event modeling. 

BTSafety’s software systems have evolved and expanded from internal training and management tools into technologies to help the broader food industry; local, state and federal government agencies; health care providers; and, public health departments to: (1) train employees on the consequences of foodborne illness outbreaks – intentional and accidental; (2) risk rank vulnerabilities in the food supply chain; (3) identify the location of products in the supply chain for rapid removal and disposal; (4) manage and track containment and remediation activities; and, (5) estimate exposure in the event of an accidental outbreak or intentional attack on the food supply.

The hallmark of BTSafety’s software systems are that they are based on actual data provided by the food industry, industry experts, medical and public health professionals, and government agencies - Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Department of Homeland Security (DHS), US Department of Agriculture (USDA), Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).  Where data are unavailable, for example in food bioterrorism events involving agents that are not typically found in food (i.e., anthrax, plague, radioisotopes, etc.), BTSafety uses expert panels to generate information. 

BTSafety has been credited with “putting food on the list of DHS critical infrastructures.”  

Principals

Jeffrey J. Sholl, Ph.D.

Chief Executive Officer, BTSafety LLC

Dr. Jeff Sholl has had over 34 years of experience in the processed food, floriculture, and fresh produce industries.  He has held senior management positions in Research and Development, Marketing, Sales, Manufacturing and Quality Control, and Plant Breeding.  He currently serves as Managing Director of Potandon Produce LLC and Colorful Harvest LLC, and as Owner and President of The Sholl Group II, which markets branded fresh produce under the Green Giant label. Jeff is also a founding partner of BTSafety LLC and iProtect, Inc.  Jeff has worked closely with numerous trade associations representing the fresh produce industry including United Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Association, Western Grower’s Association, , and the Produce Marketing Association.  He has a long working relationship with many grower/shippers and processors of fresh produce. Through his experience in various food companies, Jeff has had hands-on experience in a number of trace and recall incidents.  He has a thorough understanding of the distribution chain for highly perishable fresh produce and the logistical issues that arise during a recall event.  In collaboration with USDA, FDA and Pillsbury R&D, Green Giant participated in developing guidelines for the sprout industry on safe handling procedures for sprouts initiating the first hold and release program for a fresh produce product.

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Susan K. Harlander, Ph.D.

Senior Vice President Government and Industry Relations, BTSafety LLC

Dr. Susan Harlander has worked with the food industry for over 20 years and for 9 of those years held senior research and development management positions in the food industry where she was involved in several trace recall incidents involving dairy and processed food products.  She served as her company’s representative on numerous dairy and food industry trade association committees (Grocery Manufacturers of America, National Food Processors Association, International Dairy Foods Association, etc.) and has maintained contact with these organizations since establishing her consulting company in 2000.  Susan currently serves as a consultant to farm organizations, grain processors, food manufacturing companies, trade associations, and biotechnology providers, and has been active in domestic and international issues related to traceability and identity preservation of genetically modified foods.  Susan was the principal investigator on numerous grants and has published over 110 referred papers, book chapters and monographs.  She has edited 2 books and has made over 400 presentations to scientific and lay audiences. She has served on FDA’s Science Board, FDA’s Food Advisory Committee, USDA’s National Agricultural Research, Education, Extension and Economics Advisory Board, and the National Research Council’s Board on Agriculture and Food Chemicals Codex Committees, so she has an understanding of the issues facing food regulatory agencies.  Susan is a founding partner of BTSafety LLC and iProtect Inc.  As a former Associate Professor of Food Microbiology and Biotechnology, Susan brings extensive experience in food microbiology and an understanding of biological and chemical agents that could be used in food bioterrorism, as well as naturally occurring pathogens that contaminate the food supply.

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Board of Directors 

Lester M. Crawford

Senior Counsel, Policy Directions Inc., Washington, D.C.; Former Commissioner at the Food and Drug Administration

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Tina McKenna

President of DecoPac, Inc., Fridley, MN

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Trudy Rautio

Executive Vice President, Chief Financial Officer, Carlson Companies, Minneapolis, MN

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