Silliker, Inc., the international network of ISO 17025 accredited food testing and consulting laboratories, is rebranding to Mérieux NutriSciences as part of a global brand transition that will be completed in 2015. Mérieux NutriSciences is a subsidiary of Institut Mérieux, an international group with over 13,000 employees dedicated to offering new solutions to public health challenges worldwide.

The rebranding process has begun with the launch of the Mérieux NutriSciences website and myMXNS, the company's online testing results portal. In the coming months, the Mérieux NutriSciences logo will appear in communication campaigns that will integrate a new slogan ("Because You Care About Consumers' Health"), imagery and icon (Food Safety & Quality). Laboratory signage, vehicles and employee apparel are currently being transitioned to the MXNS logo.

"Silliker has been part of Institut Mérieux since the nineties and we were incorporated as Mérieux NutriSciences in 2011; for many of our customers our brand transition is not breaking news," said Silliker NA President Jim Miller. "Under the leadership of President and Chief Executive Officer Philippe Sans, Mérieux NutriSciences has grown to over 75 locations in 18 countries, and we are excited to be part of this vibrant and expanding organization."

With historical roots tracing to Louis Pasteur, the Mérieux name is universally recognized for its historic work on the development of life saving vaccines to its current research on the human microbiome. Privately held, Institut Mérieux generates annual sales in excess of 2 billion euros from its three subsidiaries, bioMérieux, Transgene and Mérieux NutriSciences, and innovation-focused entities -- Mérieux Développement and ABL Inc.

Noting Silliker is closing one historic chapter and beginning another, Miller emphasized that its clientele will not experience any changes in services. "Our customers will continue to work with the same dedicated professionals who are committed to protecting their brand," Miller said. "Standing behind them is an incomparable team of Mérieux NutriSciences scientists ready to help them succeed on the local and international stage."

The Silliker name will continue to have a presence in the food industry, according to Miller. "The legacies of Dr. John H. Silliker, our company founder, Dr. Russell Flowers, who led the company for over 20 years, and countless employees will live on," Miller said. This summer, the organization's state-of-the-art laboratory in Crete, IL, will be renamed the John H. Silliker Solution Center and the Silliker Lecture Series, a fixture at annual meetings of the International Association for Food Protection, will continue into the foreseeable future.