Benson Hill Opens New HQ in STL
On September 21, Benson Hill opened their new headquarters in Creve Coeur. The new facility is located in the St. Louis innovation district, also home to the Donald Danforth Plan Science Center and Bayer Crop Science.
Established in 2012, Benson Hill is considered a rising star in the ag-tech industry. Since their opening, they have collected around $133 million in funding, including from the investment arm of Google.
Benson Hill believes that modernizing food systems requires forward-thinking leaders throughout the food production chain. Creating better tasting, more nutritious options for both food and feed will play an important role in reversing damaging trends. Food is health and the they do will contribute to a healthier people and planet.
One of their main focuses is on soybeans. Benson Hill has commercialized an ultra-high protein soybean that reduces production costs and the amount of water needed to grow it.
“We develop crops that are better, and what we mean when we say ‘better’ is that they are more nutritious, more sustainable, and they taste better,” co-founder and CEO Matt Crisp said Tuesday on St. Louis on the Air.
“[Society] over time [has been] very commodity focused, and we’ve bred for things like yield and moving fruits and vegetables long distances. And we’ve left behind some really important things that actually are there, but have been bred away … like nutrition density and oftentimes flavor and taste,” Crisp added. “And we think by using technology and the convergence of capabilities we can reincorporate a lot of what we’ve lost.”
“I’d say there’s definitely an emergent hub of activity, and St. Louis is undoubtedly the No. 1 or 2 place in the United States — and for that matter the world — to invest in plant science innovation and to develop startup organizations around this area of investment,” Crisp said. “And, it’s in the heartland. You can draw a line around St. Louis and have access to the grower community that’s oftentimes where this starts. The recipe, I think, gets better and better. It’s definitely a hub.”