What Aromatic Plant Research Center does

Aromatic Plant Research Center (APRC) is a privately-held, third-party analytical testing laboratory headquartered in Lehi, Utah, founded in 2017. The company provides specialized testing services for natural products including essential oils, cannabis and hemp, food and beverages, cosmetics, supplements, and fragrance/flavor ingredients. Its stated customer base spans over 500 clients worldwide across these verticals. APRC is the first state-certified Medical Cannabis testing facility in Utah and holds ISO Accreditation and USDA Ready certifications, serving as an independent verification layer for product purity, adulteration detection, and regulatory compliance.

APRC's technology stack centers on advanced analytical chemistry instrumentation including GC-MS, LC-MS, HPLC, GC-FID, Chiral GC-MS, and PCR Microarray. Notable technical differentiators include extended GC-MS runtimes of up to 2 hours versus the industry-standard 20 minutes, proprietary synthetic marker detection methods, C-14 isotope testing for petroleum-derived ingredient identification, and chiral analysis for enantiomeric ratio verification. The company holds an exclusive equipment partnership with Shimadzu Scientific Instruments and has developed specialized methods for pesticide screening (LC-MS/MS with biphenyl columns) and microbial testing (PCR microarray). A Satellite Lab Program extends its reach through affiliated remote branch laboratories offering 24-hour turnaround times in seven countries.

The company operates a usage-based revenue model charging per-sample fees starting at approximately $25 per test, with discounts for new customers. GTM is sales-led, combining direct outreach to enterprise customers, international conference presentations by CEO Aaron Sorensen, educational content marketing (blog, YouTube, Research Aromatica platform), and peer-reviewed research publications. Management consists of CEO Aaron Sorensen and a research-heavy board including Dr. Anjanette DeCarlo, Dr. Noura Dosoky, Dr. Prabodh Satyal, and William Setzer. The company is bootstrapped with no disclosed funding rounds or external investors.

Name

Aromatic Plant Research Center

Legal name

Aromatic Plant Research Center

Website

https://aromaticplant.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2017

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Aromatic Plant Research Center is a privately-held third-party analytical testing laboratory in Lehi, Utah, providing GC-MS, LC-MS, and specialized adulteration and pesticide testing for essential oils, cannabis, hemp, food, cosmetics, supplements, and fragrance clients across 500+ customers and 7 countries.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Analytical Testing Services

NAICS

Testing Laboratories and Services (54138), Medical Laboratories (621511)

SIC

Services-Testing Laboratories (8734), Services-Commercial Physical & Biological Research (8731), Services-Medical Laboratories (8071)

akta.pro primary industry

Release Testing & Batch Certification (QC) (HLAGADAC)

akta.pro secondary industries

Proficiency Testing, Method Validation & Reference Materials (Food Labs) (AFALAAAK), Pesticide Residue Testing (MRLs, Multi-Residue Methods) (AFALAFAA)

Keywords

• Essential oil testing
• Cannabis testing services
• Analytical testing laboratory
• Hemp testing services
• Aromatic plant research

Headquarters

HQ city

Lehi

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices8 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. Laboratory Testing Services: APRC generates revenue primarily through providing analytical testing services for essential oils, cannabis/hemp products, food, beverages, cosmetics, and supplements. Testing is performed on a per-sample basis with various test types (cannabinoid profiling, pesticide screening, adulteration detection, microbial testing, etc.). The company offers testing packages and individual tests.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Aromatic Plant Research Center (APRC) is a third-party independent analytical testing laboratory that performs chemical profiling, adulteration detection, and purity verification for essential oils, cannabis and hemp, food and beverages, cosmetics, supplements, and fragrance/flavor products. Testing is conducted under ISO accreditation and Utah state medical cannabis certification using methods including GC-MS (with extended runtime), HPLC, LC-MS/MS, Chiral GC-MS, FTIR, ICP-MS, PCR microbial, and C-14 isotope analysis. The company also operates a global Satellite Lab Program and publishes peer-reviewed research on aromatic plants.

Product overview

Aromatic Plant Research Center (APRC) operates as a third-party independent laboratory offering a comprehensive suite of testing and research services for natural products. The core offering centers on essential oil testing (including extracts, absolutes, CO2 extracts, and concretes), cannabis and hemp testing (cannabinoid profiling, pesticides, residual solvents, terpenes, microbial), and food/beverage/cosmetic testing. APRC provides testing under its ISO accreditation and Utah state medical cannabis lab certification. The portfolio includes the Satellite Lab Program (remote branch laboratories) for faster turnaround, peer-reviewed Research & Publications, and an Education Platform under the Research Aromatica brand covering production videos, lab science, and origin-tracing content. All testing uses internationally recognized analytical methods including GC-MS, GC-FID, HPLC, chiral GC-MS, and LC-MS/MS.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Essential Oil Testing Comprehensive chemical profiling and purity testing service for essential oils, extracts, absolutes, CO2 extracts, and concretes. Uses GC-MS (with extended ~2-hour runtime), GC-FID, chiral GC-MS, and FTIR for quantitative, qualitative, chirality, and adulteration analyses. Targets essential oil manufacturers, distributors, and brands requiring ISO-standard purity certification.
• Cannabis Testing State-certified cannabis and hemp testing service covering cannabinoid profiling (HPLC), pesticide screening (LC-MS/MS), residual solvent detection (GC-MS), terpene analysis, microbial testing, and moisture/water activity measurement. APRC is the first state-certified Medical Cannabis testing facility in Utah, with a 4-day average turnaround and 30,000+ samples tested.
• Hemp Testing Full-spectrum hemp testing service that includes cannabinoid profile verification, pesticide screens, VOC screens, terpene profiling, heavy metal testing, and microbial analysis on UT state-compliant panels. Targeted at hemp producers, CBD product manufacturers, and USDA-aligned hemp operators.
• Food & Beverage Testing Testing service for food and beverage products covering beverage profiling, vitamin and mineral quantitation, acid/peroxide value assessment, and contaminant screening. Targets F&B manufacturers using essential oils and botanical ingredients.
• Cosmetic & Supplement Testing Quality assurance testing service for cosmetics and supplements that includes heavy metal screening, microbial testing, and purity verification against global regulatory standards. Used by cosmetic, personal care, and dietary supplement manufacturers.
• Fragrance & Flavor Testing Analytical testing for fragrance and flavor products including terpene identification and quantitation, perfume product analysis, and authenticity verification. Used by fragrance houses and flavor companies requiring essential oil and aromatic compound analysis.
• Satellite Lab Program Affiliate program for small remote branch laboratories offering world-class essential oil testing with 24-hour turnaround times, reduced costs, and third-party approved test reports. Includes method validation, SOPs, and full lab operation support, eliminating chemist hiring and confidentiality risks for partners.

Quantifiable outcome

• 80% of commercially available essential oils are estimated to be adulterated, creating market demand for third-party verification services.
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration1 record

Feature7 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Shimadzu Scientific InstrumentscoreTechnology or IntegrationShimadzu is APRC's exclusive GC and LC equipment provider. APRC CEO Aaron Sorensen met with Shimadzu's executive team at their Kyoto Japan headquarters to discuss ongoing collaborations in aromatic plant research. Shimadzu has a nearly 150-year history of innovation in scientific equipment.
• LushminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerLush (UK-based cosmetics company) contacted Dr. Anjanette DeCarlo to work on frankincense sustainability analysis. Dr. DeCarlo conducted field assessments of frankincense tree health and released new reports on tree condition, interviewing harvesters and landowners in frankincense-producing regions.
• Satellite Lab PartnerscoreTechnology or IntegrationSatellite laboratories are small branch labs affiliated with APRC but located remotely. They offer world-class essential oil testing with drastically reduced turnaround times (24 hours) and costs, while maintaining APRC quality standards, method validation, SOPs, and full lab operation support. Zero risk of chemist hiring or confidentiality issues for partners.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• SGS: Global inspection, verification, testing, and certification company with extensive agricultural, food, and consumer product testing services — directly comparable to APRC's testing service model across multiple verticals.
• Eurofins Scientific: World-leading testing laboratory group with broad food, environmental, pharmaceutical, and consumer product testing capabilities — overlaps APRC's essential oil, food, and cannabis-adjacent analytical work as a much larger diversified competitor.
• Bureau Veritas: International testing, inspection, and certification firm serving food, agricultural, cosmetics, and consumer goods industries — a broader-scale incumbent offering overlapping analytical and quality testing to APRC's customer types.
• Mérieux NutriSciences: Global food testing and sensory services network offering analytical chemistry, microbiological, and contaminant testing for food, beverage, and supplement clients — a much larger incumbent competing for APRC's food and supplement testing business.
• Intertek: Global quality assurance and testing services provider covering food, cosmetics, supplements, and consumer products — overlapping APRC's analytical testing categories as a much larger diversified incumbent.

Direct peers

• SC Labs: California-headquartered cannabis and hemp testing laboratory offering cannabinoid profiling, terpene analysis, pesticide screening, residual solvents, and microbial testing — directly overlapping APRC's cannabis testing menu with comparable regulatory positioning.
• Anresco Laboratories: Independent food, cannabis, and nutraceutical testing laboratory providing analytical chemistry, microbiology, and contaminant testing — overlapping APRC's food/beverage and cannabis testing offerings with similar third-party positioning.
• Confidence Analytics: Washington-state cannabis testing lab offering full compliance panels including cannabinoids, terpenes, pesticides, residual solvents, and microbial assays — directly comparable regulated testing services to APRC's cannabis portfolio.
• ACT Laboratories: Multi-state cannabis and hemp testing laboratory providing potency, contaminant, terpene, and microbial panels to licensed producers — a direct head-to-head competitor in the state-mandated cannabis testing category APRC serves in Utah.

Emerging players

• ACS Laboratory: Florida-headquartered cannabis and hemp testing laboratory offering full compliance panels with rapid turnaround — comparable to APRC in regulated cannabis testing scope though with narrower geographic focus.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCvB8dcgTWwGpbWTEBoTeFvQ
• Xx.com/plantaromatic

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Aromatic Plant Research Center