About Us

LPC Naturals is a new company that promotes and distributes a successful range of seed treatments and other products that establish a beneficial interaction with a proprietary strain of the symbiotic fungus Beauveria bassiana. This natural symbiotic partnership elevates the plants innate ability to resist pathogens and seasonal stressors and the symbiosis can also result in increased yields and improved quality.

With twenty years’ experience, Jessica Staha has helped technology companies in many different industries focus their efforts and productize their inventions. Her teams have spanned biofuels, medical, cannabis and hemp testing, plant breeding, and CEA technology development and trialing. As a leader with each of these groups she has focused their messaging to introduce their discoveries through publications, patents, and lectures. Today, as our CEO she works with the team to gain adoption of LPC Naturals’ technology throughout the agricultural community.

Dr. Rushton has over 30 years of experience in plant biotechnology. He has a degree in biochemistry from Cambridge University and a Ph. D. from Manchester University. He spent 10 years researching at the world-famous Max-Planck-Institute in Cologne Germany where he made several world first discoveries in the area of plant disease resistance. In the United Kingdom, he has also worked at Bristol University and Oxford University. Dr. Rushton arrived in the USA in 2005 and has since held the positions of Research Assistant Professor at The University of Virginia, and Associate Professor at South Dakota State University and Texas A&M. More recently, he was Vice President for Plant Biotechnology at 22nd Century Group. Dr. Rushton is an expert on plant disease resistance, drought responses, vertical farming, and plant secondary metabolites including cannabinoids and nicotine. He is a leader and lecturer in the new field of industrial hemp/cannabis and also has extensive expertise in soybean, turf grass, tobacco, cereals, Arabidopsis, mosses, and rice. Dr. Rushton has over 60 publications and these have been cited by other scientists over 10,000 times. He also has numerous patents and patent applications. In addition to science, Dr. Rushton has experience in writing press releases, intellectual property, and speaking to audiences of all levels. He has also appeared several times on local television.

Nicholas has five years of experience in successfully developing our Beauveria bassiana products where he has played a crucial role. He has over fifteen years of experience in the agricultural commodities business. Nicholas is an expert in developing new Biologicals and the business requirements for bringing them to market.

Brendan Lawler has a Bachelor’s Degree in Accounting from the University at Buffalo and a Master’s Degree in Taxation. He is a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) and serves as Chief Financial Officer for both Lackawanna Products Corp and LPC Naturals.

Nevin F. Murchie is a cum laude graduate of the State University of New York at Buffalo. He received a Masters degree in Public Administration from Cornell University with a concentration in Government, Politics and Policy Studies. Nevin earned his law degree from the University at Buffalo Law School, State University of New York. He has been admitted to practice law in New York, Florida, the U.S. District Court for the Western District of New York, and Ontario (Canada). Nevin practices law in the following areas:  U.S. immigration, Canadian immigration, real estate, and business.