Cerealus Holdings, LLC, located in Waterville, Maine, was founded in 2004 by chemist Tony Jabar. In 2004, Cerealus partnered with the University of Maine Process Development Center (PDC) to develop non-toxic, bio-based, sustainable applications that could potentially revolutionize a variety of chemical applications.
With seed grant support from the Maine Technology Institute and innovative research conducted by Jabar and PDC staff members, Cerealus developed a new bio-based formulation to replace fluorinated compounds in paper-based food packaging products, called "HOLDOUT™." Cerealus and the University of Maine continue to develop and commercialize numerous patented and patent-pending technologies, including our newest technology for paper mills, CEREGEL™.
With seed grant support from the Maine Technology Institute and innovative research conducted by Jabar and PDC staff members, Cerealus developed a new bio-based formulation to replace fluorinated compounds in paper-based food packaging products, called "HOLDOUT™." Cerealus and the University of Maine continue to further develop numerous patent-pending technologies and are currently in discussions with several development partners to accelerate commercialization of Holdout and other products.
Tony Jabar, Founder and CEO
Tony Jabar founded Cerealus in 2004 and has over 20 years experience in specialty chemicals, biotech, agrochemical and life sciences.
In 1994, Tony co-founded T Square, Inc., a specialty chemical company involved in replacement technologies for hazardous solvents, in Charlotte, NC. He went on to work as Regional Manager for the Organic Products Division of Henkel Chemicals, an international leader in consumer and industrial product development. From 1998 until 2003, Tony was Director of Development at Global Protein Products, an early stage biopolymer company located in Maine, where he developed a biodegradable substance to preserve vegetables.
Tony was awarded a Small Business Innovation Research Grant from the USDA for his work in agricultural research in 1999, and in 2005, was awarded a patent (US 6,844,181) entitled, “Method of Increasing Crop Yield.” He currently has two additional patents pending for agricultural crop protection and barrier compositions.
Tony is a former high-school chemistry teacher and coach at MCI in Pittsfield, ME. He is a graduate from Acadia University in Nova Scotia, as well as the University of Maine Pulp and Paper Institute. Contact Tony at tony@cerealus.com.
Tom Moore, President and COO
Tom Moore joined Cerealus in early 2008, and is primarily responsible for sales and commercial activites. Like Tony, Tom sees the commercial opportunities of Zein-based alternatives to the current use of fluorocarbons and synthetic compounds currently used in food packaging. He brings a varied background and entrepreneurial spirit to Cerealus.
Tom is the former President and COO for Independence Air and Atlantic Coast Airlines (also known as United Express). During his 10 year tenure at Independence and Atlantic Coast, the airline grew from a small turboprop operation to over a dozen Airbus A319’s and 100 regional jets. Prior to his time with Atlantic Coast Airlines, Tom was with Continental Airlines for 10 years, most recently as staff vice president of aircraft maintenance in Houston, TX.
Tom has a BBA degree from the University of Notre Dame in finance, and received his MBA in accounting from the University of Houston. Moore served on the Board of Directors for Atlantic Coast and Independence Air, both publicly traded companies on NASDAQ. Tom is the past chairman of the Regional Airline Association and currently sits on the board of The Hyde School in Bath, ME. Contact Tom at tmoore@cerealus.com.
Mike Bilodeau, Chief Scientific Advisor
Mike Bilodeau is currently Director of the Process Development Center at the University of Maine in Orono. The Center, which conducts more than $1million worth of industrial contract research annually, is part of the Chemical and Biological Engineering Department and provides research and technical services to the Forest Products Industry. Mike also serves as the Industrial Liaison for the Forest Bioproducts Research Project at the University Maine, a multi-disciplinary research effort to study a wide range of issues associated with the conversion of forest products into transportation fuels, energy and high value chemicals. Prior to joining the University in 2003, Mike worked for Sappi Fine Papers North America for 20 years in research, development and corporate engineering.
Mike received a degree in Chemical Engineering from the University of Maine. Conact Mike at mbilodeau@cerealus.com.