Teams

Mr. Rowe is the Co-founder, President, and Chief Executive Officer of SGS Nutrasource and its subsidiaries. A charismatic leader and visionary, Mr. Rowe’s executive guidance enables SGS Nutrasource to successfully launch services and expand the businesses. With over 20 years of experience assisting the global marketplace in commercializing innovative consumer health products, Mr. Rowe has been instrumental in designing and implementing strategic solutions and validated claims for SGS Nutrasource’s clients through product certifications, clinical trials and regulatory strategy. Mr. Rowe has also led the acquisition of two subsidiaries. Under Mr. Rowe’s continued leadership and strategic vision, the company looks to an optimistic future helping its valued customers commercialize their innovations to improve healthcare globally.

As Chief Operating Officer, Mr. Wallace brings 25 years of leadership and management experience in scientific-based consulting to guide SGS Nutrasource's operations in its next phase of growth. At the start of his career, Mr. Wallace co-founded environmental and technology application consulting firm Innovative Management Solutions (IMS). Over a period of seven years, IMS delivered more than 500 projects on behalf of 25 federal organizations, a series of major hospitals, and a range of private sector clients. In 2002, IMS joined Jacques Whitford, a leading national consulting firm, where Mr. Wallace served in a variety of positions leading growth across multiple business units and geographies. In 2009, Jacques Whitford joined Stantec, a global 25,000 person publicly traded consulting firm, where Mr. Wallace progressed through several positions to his latest role of Senior Vice-President and Business Leader, Environmental Services. In this role, he was responsible for a practice of 1,000 professional staff ranging from scientists and engineers to field technologists, data specialists, and communications experts operating in 10 business units across Canada.

Mr. Burkhart joined SGS Nutrasource in 2017, bringing over 20 years of experience in sales leadership, product development, and management experience in the global technology and services sector. With proven experience helping customers achieve their strategic goals, Mr. Burkhart oversees all business development activities for SGS Nutrasource. Previously, Mr. Burkhart held Account Executive and Management Roles at Oracle and Microsoft.

Mr. Baisley joined SGS Nutrasource in 2013, bringing over 12 years of quality assurance, clinical, preclinical and regulatory natural health product experience and an additional four years of antibody/biologics development experience. Mr. Baisley has been an active member of the probiotic community as a member of the International Probiotics Association (IPA) Board of Directors, blogging for the IPA, and presenting at the probiotic workshops and other industry events. Having depth in both regulatory filings and project management of clinical trials provides Mr. Baisley with an understanding of regulatory body thinking and has led to his respected relationship with Health Canada. From 2011-2014, Mr. Baisley participated on a Health Canada expert working group as a member representing the dietary supplement industry to work toward harmonization of safety reporting for supplements, drugs and biologics.

Ms. Mozingo is Vice President of US Nutra Regulatory Sciences. She has over 15 years of experience in industry and consulting, holds a certificate as a Preventive Control Qualified Individual (PCQI), and is trained and experienced in ingredient approvals (GRAS, NDIN, FAP, CAP), product labelling, formulation reviews, and current good manufacturing requirements for dietary supplements.

Ms. John brings 17 years of regulatory and quality experience in the Canadian Natural Health Product (NHP) space, including cross-functional support and project management. As Vice President of NHP & Pharmaceutical Regulatory Sciences, Tania works closely with SGS Nutrasource’s analytical, clinical, medical writing, business development, and marketing teams to ensure client objectives are exceeded through strong scientific substantiation and strategic partnership. She has a B.Sc. and M.Sc. from the University of Guelph, majoring in Nutrition & Nutraceutical Sciences and Food Safety & Quality Assurance, respectively. Previously, Ms. John served as a Product Licensing & QA Associate at Now Foods/Puresource Inc. prior to joining SGS Nutrasource as Regulatory Affairs Specialist and, later, Associate Director, then Director of Regulatory Affairs. After 6 years, Ms. John took on a Regulatory Affairs Lead position at the Clorox Company where she was instrumental in Canadian compliance and innovation licensing of its natural health supplements, namely the Renew Life and NeoCell brands. While passionate about all categories, she has developed a niche for herself in the beauty from within and digestive care areas. She is also a steward of the industry, leading the Global Prebiotic Association’s (GPA) Scientific & Technical and Regulatory Committees and is actively involved with the Canadian Health Food Association’s (CHFA), serving on their Regulatory Affairs Advisory Council. 

As a member of the SGS Nutrasource team for the past 12 years, Mr. Yan has deepened his knowledge of regulatory, clinical, strategic planning, and quality testing in the supplement and natural health product field. In his current role as Vice President of Product Certifications, Mr. Yan has helped hundreds of clients with the information required to prove that their products are safe and effective for regulatory bodies as well as analytical testing required for research projects, release testing, and product formulation.

Mr. Brown is a high-energy sales professional dedicated to establishing and growing client relationships and identifying strategic business opportunities. With a focus on regulatory and clinical services for the U.S. dietary supplement sector, Mr. Brown brings exceptional skills in strategic sales, customer service, and networking to provide clients with maximum value.

Elisa Fernandez is a highly motivated and results-driven sales professional who has been working in the natural product, dietary supplement, pharmaceutical & medical device industries for nearly 13 years. With a background in cellular biology and neuroscience, Mrs. Fernandez has experience in areas of natural health products with a focus in the probiotics segment and is quick to identify & assess the needs of clients while offering customized solutions that align with their goals. As Director of Business Development & Sales at SGS Nutrasource, Mrs. Fernandez has played a critical role in expanding the business and handling the accounts of some of the most prominent brands in the industry. She is a team player and is always willing to go above and beyond to support her clients and colleagues.

Mr. Edwards joined SGS Nutrasource in 2021 and brings over 15 years of sales and entrepreneurial experience to the organization. Leading the expansion of current markets and international growth for the certifications division of SGS Nutrasource, Mr. Edwards works with hundreds of brands, ingredient providers, contract manufacturers, and trade organizations to push out the certification programs and analytical capabilities offered by SGS Nutrasource.

Mr. Barr joined SGS Nutrasource in 2017 to lead the development and launch of Nutrasource’s next-generation Omega Blood Score diagnostic test. With a Bachelor of Science in Chemical Engineering from the University of Western Ontario and experience in pharmaceutical manufacturing for the whooping cough vaccine, Mr. Barr is well-versed in the opportunities and growth areas of the healthcare sector. Mr. Barr is also an international award recipient for innovations related to diagnostic devices.

Leanne Lutomsky is a dedicated sales professional with expertise in navigating the intricate regulatory landscapes of Canada and the U.S. With a Bachelor of Science degree, years of experience in the food industry, and over eight years in regulatory consulting, Leanne excels at guiding clients through the complexities of compliance for foods, natural health products, dietary supplements, cosmetics, and OTC drugs. Her passion for problem-solving and ability to simplify complex challenges make her a trusted partner in achieving regulatory success.

Ms. Rodrigues joined the SGS Nutrasource team in 2019 as Clinical Trial Recruiter and has since transitioned into a marketing role. With a degree in Food & Nutrition and a passion for digital marketing and content production, Ms. Rodrigues brings corporate concepts to life through multimedia marketing and graphic design coupled with advertising strategy.  As Marketing Manager, Ms. Rodrigues coordinates and implements marketing, communications, and event activities for SGS Nutrasource including clinical trials, regulatory consulting and certifications.

Dr. Kayla Preece brings extensive experience assessing the scientific and regulatory compliance of ingredients for food and dietary supplements, including botanicals, microorganisms, and more. These assessments have predominantly been for self-determined and FDA GRAS notifications and New Dietary Ingredient Notifications.

With a background in integrative medicine, Dr. Preece practiced medicine before transitioning to regulatory affairs and safety assessment. Dr. Preece has been involved in producing and publishing toxicological manuscripts for dietary ingredients and has received a Diplomate of the American Board of Toxicology. Additionally, Dr. Preece is a full member of the Society of Toxicology.

Dr. Dziwenka is a Registered Veterinarian as well as a Board Certified Toxicologist.  She has many years of experience with companion animals as a practicing veterinarian in addition to experience in laboratory animal medicine. Dr. Dziwenka also brings extensive experience in designing and conducting preclinical research studies including safety, pharmacokinetic and efficacy studies, both as a Study Director and Study Monitor, in a variety of laboratory species. She is well versed in regulatory aspects including Good Laboratory Practice, submission of GRAS dossiers and NDI notifications. Dr. Dziwenka has managed a large Canadian Council of Animal Care (CCAC) accredited university facility and has over 10 years of experience as a member of Institutional Animal Care and Use Committees.  

Bernd received a Bachelor of Science in 1986 from the University of Guelph (ON, Canada). For 27 years, he has managed Quality Assurance (QA) and Regulatory Affairs (RA) projects for Canadian firms, developing QA and RA programs for various consumer product regulatory categories. Between 1998 and 2016, Bernd provided input to trade associations like the Canadian Health Food Association and Canadian Homeopathic Pharmaceutical Association regarding Natural Health Products (NHPs) and foods. In 2001, he actively participated in the Health Canada’s Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP) Working Group that developed the NHP GMP Guidance Document, which serves as an informative, user-friendly, and valuable resource for industry. Bernd currently works as Director of Quality at SGS Nutrasource Pharmaceutical and Nutraceutical Sciences, leading their Quality Management Services, as well as supporting the NutraStrongTM certification program.  

Dr. Guerra brings more than 8 years of experience in the pharmaceutical industry, working in Research and Development and Regulatory Affairs. She has managed several successful regulatory submissions to Health Canada and the United States (US) Food and Drug Administration (FDA), including Investigational New Drugs (INDs), Abbreviated New Drug Applications (ANDAs), and New Drug Applications (NDAs). Dr. Guerra has a strong understanding of quality and Good Manufacturing Practices (GMPs), which she leverages when implementing Chemistry, Manufacturing, and Controls (CMC) strategy. In her current role as Regulatory Affairs Manager at SGS Nutrasource, she provides scientific and regulatory support on existing projects, as well as during the evaluation of new business opportunities. Paula also actively participates on the Global Prebiotic Association’s (GPA) Scientific & Technical Committee, writing and reviewing scientific content.

Dr. Guerra holds a PhD in Analytical Chemistry by the University of Barcelona. She studied emerging contaminants and their impact on the environment and humans. She is a published author of 25 peer-reviewed journal articles and two book chapters.

Kaiti Valm is project manager with Nutrasource/GRAS Associates in regulatory sciences. She supports clients with GRAS and other regulatory filings, as well as safety and efficacy studies and brings over seven years of experience in pre-clinical research and education in business, zoology, and veterinary medicine.

Erin Taraborrelli is the Program Manager of Labeling and Training at SGS Nutrasource, a leading consulting firm specializing in regulatory affairs and clinical research for dietary supplements, drugs, food, cosmetics, and animal products. With over 20 years of experience in regulatory affairs, Erin assists companies in navigating complex compliance requirements while gaining a competitive edge in the marketplace. She has trained hundreds of industry professionals on supplement and food labeling and claim compliance, ensuring businesses stay ahead of regulatory changes and maintain adherence to industry standards.

Ben is a Junior Toxicologist with undergraduate and master’s degrees from the University of Guelph specialized in toxicology. Ben also has a strong background in nutritional science, with research experience involving the role of omega-3s in inflammation. During his time at Nutrasource, Ben has worked with the US Nutra Regulatory Sciences team to evaluate the safety of food and dietary supplement ingredients on behalf of our clients. This work has led to an interest in New Approach Methods (NAMs) for evaluating the safety of new chemicals.

Drawing on more than 15 years of experience in a variety of positions in the CRO business and running a U.S. based clinical trial site, Ms. Recker is responsible for overseeing all SGS Nutrasource Sponsor programs and project managers.

Stéphanie-Anne Girard, PhD, brings over 15 years of natural health product/dietary supplement and pharmaceutical clinical research experience. Dr. Girard’s industry work experience includes a leadership position as Clinical Program Manager at Lallemand Health Solutions (LHS) where she oversaw study design and execution of clinical trials on probiotics, working closely with universities, CROs, private research sites, and KOLs. During this time, she published numerous scientific articles in peer-reviewed journals and has presented at many international conferences and scientific meetings. More recently, Dr. Girard has managed clinical operations teams at ICON Strategic Solutions where she was assigned to Merck Canada.

Dr. Girard holds a PhD in Nutritional Sciences from the University of Florida, a Masters’ degree in Pharmacology from the University of Montreal and a BSc in Microbiology and Immunology from McGill University. Additionally, she completed a Post–Doctoral degree through an Industrial R&D Fellowship Program from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) in collaboration with LHS.  Her academic training focused on pre-clinical research investigating the effects of probiotics on post-myocardial infarction depression, which resulted in an understanding of the effect of probiotics on the kinetics of biochemical and physiological cerebral changes following a myocardial infarction. In collaboration with Sponsors from the food industry, she also oversaw several clinical studies investigating prebiotics, specifically, galactooligossacharide (GOS), immunity and digestive health in older adults during cold/flu season.

Based on more than 20 years of experience in designing, developing and managing clinical pharmacy units, Ms. Samborski is responsible for managing the SGS Nutrasource on-site pharmacy and brings experience in with Controlled Substances, Narcotics and Cannabis handling.

Mr. Fahim joined SGS Nutrasource in 2020, bringing over 14 years of experience in Data management in Clinical research organizations and environmental disciplines. As a manager of the Data management team, Mr. Fahim is responsible for the overall quality and integrity of the clinical data management activities for SGS Nutrasource. Mr. Fahim advises the clinical project team(s) regarding clinical data management activities and deliverables and ensures consistency across projects.

As a biostatistician with over 10 years' experience, Jun has worked in a wide range of fields specific to Phase I through IV clinical trials, including pharmacokinetic (PK) studies, allergy studies, patch studies, drug escalation studies and others. Jun is an expert on Parametric and Non-Parametric Statistical method and is a SAS Certified Advanced Programmer, allowing him to efficiently use SAS to generate tables, listings, and graphs. With the trend of CDISC (Clinical Data Interchange Standards Consortium) being mandatory for submissions, his exceptional knowledge and expertise on CDISC greatly improves the quality of submission. In addition, his strong knowledge and experience on sample size calculations, and proficient technical skill on PASS, increases accuracy when selecting the number of subjects. Prior to joining SGS Nutrasource, Jun worked for Pharma Medica as a Data Scientist in which he independently performed analysis of a patch study, including perfecting SAP and creating analysis datasets. Jun earned his Master of Statistics from Katholieke Universiteit Leuven.

Dr. Lin is a researcher in human nutrition and food sciences as well as a Certified Medical Writer (MWC). With 3+ years of medical writing experience and 6+ years of clinical trial involvement, she leads a team of medical writers who are responsible for clinical study document development and scientific communication activities, such as manuscript writing. She is passionate about promoting human health with food and natural health products.

For the past 11 years, Hyun-Ah has served the Certifications and Analytics team at SGS Nutrasource in client management with a focus on sample collection, processing, and third-party certification of natural health products. With extensive experience in the marine oil supplement industry, Hyun-Ah has recently become a member of the GOED Technical Committee, serving the omega-3 industry. As a specialist in Client Relations and having assisted in the certification of 150+ global brands, Hyun-Ah’s motto remains, “To support and better serve clients with excellent service and beyond".

As a graduate from the University of Guelph, Erin holds a HBSc in Food Science and started her career in the Food Industry as a Quality Assurance Technician at a Brewery in Kitchener. After working at the Brewery for six years, Erin transitioned into the Natural Health Product Industry and joined the Certifications and Analytics team at SGS Nutrasource in May of 2021. Since then, the focus has been on sample processing, reviewing analytical results, and managing the IGEN program.

With a background in computer engineering and more than 20 years of experience in systems design and information technology, Jeff is responsible for developing, managing, and optimizing SGS Nutrasource’s communications, information technology platforms, and software systems. He holds a Bachelor of Applied Science degree in Computer Engineering from the University of Waterloo.

With over 10 years of experience in finance and accounting, Alec Blaber has joined SGS Nutrasource as Director of Finance and Accounting. He is a Chartered Professional Accountant with an Honors Bachelor of Arts in Economics & Accounting from Wilfrid Laurier University. Alec has held roles in private industry at organizations like Linamar Corporation and Livingston International, as well as in public accounting, most recently at Doane Grant Thornton LLP in their Independent Business Group. Bringing a wide range of experience, Alec is passionate about his work and drives excellence in reporting, performance & risk management, due diligence, and compliance. In his current role, Alec leads SGS Nutrasource’s accounting and finance team by supporting all operational segments with timely, accurate information and tools to align the team’s operational and financial strategies.

As Finance Manager, Sue oversees SGS Nutrasource’s day-to-day financial operations, including invoicing, while providing vendors and clients with excellent customer service. Sue brings experience in sales and account management, accounts payables/receivables, and customer support for a variety of industries. She holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in Biology from the University of Guelph.

Sophie joined SGS Nutrasource in 2019, with a Bachelor of Commerce Honors Degree from University of Guelph and a Diploma in Human Resources from McMaster University. Sophie brings experience in managing teams, customer service and HR recruitment and consulting drives her passion for creating an inclusive work environment through Human Resources at SGS Nutrasource. Sophie's current role, focuses on talent acquisition, operational management, employee retention, HR compliance, health and safety, compensation, and benefits for SGS Nutrasource and GRAS Associates and is active in a variety of committees including the Social Committee, Health and Safety Committee, Information Exchange Committee and Marketing Committee.