NEWS 18 FEED & ADDITIVE MAGAZINE November 2023 Benson Hill, Inc., a food tech company unlocking the natural genetic diversity of plants, announced plans to improve its financial position and accelerate its transition to an asset-light business model with a focused expansion into broadacre animal feed markets, complementing its accomplishments in human food ingredients. According to the company, the near-term opportunity in animal nutrition is consistent with Benson Hill’s strategy to expand and diversify its proprietary product portfolio, improve nutrition security, and foster collaboration with industry partners within the food value chain. In connection with this announcement, the Board of Directors has appointed Deanie Elsner, who had served as Interim CEO since June, to the position of Chief Executive Officer, effective immediately. Elsner, CEO of Benson Hill, commented: “Benson Hill has the agility to persevere. Based on our ongoing strategic review, we believe that strengthening of our financial foundation, moving to an asset-light business model, and introducing our innovations into attractive broader end markets, is the most feasible path forward for Benson Hill. Through the actions we have taken and are continuing to implement, we are poised to deliver significant value as a leader in AI-driven proprietary seed innovation.” Elsner continued, “We are already making progress on our strategic path. With the expected divesBenson Hill focuses on animal feed markets A new opportunity for poultry and swine farmers to dramatically improve production and sustainability at reduced cost was featured at the Mexican Association of Animal Nutrition Specialists (AMENA) conference in Puerto Vallarta. Research presented at the conference showed that supplementing diets with multi-component protease (MCP) offers strong advantages to produce more from less feed – transforming performance, health, and profitability. The findings showcase a major opportunity not only for Latin American production but for poultry and swine farmers globally, says Dr. Jorge Perez Palencia, Research Associate at South Dakota State University. “Our findings reinforce that it makes sense to supplement monogastric diets with protease. But even more importantly, for the best results, it is critical to use a multi-component protease.” The potential for animal agriculture is significant, he says. “MCP provides a solution to address the rising cost of feed, which today is one of the biggest challenges for livestock farmers, the feed industry, and animal nutrition worldwide.” The feed can account for up to 70 percent of total production expenses, he notes. In recent years the cost of feed has peaked further due to a range of factors including supply challenges, market volatility, and – particularly for developing markets such as Latin America – more limited economical choices in protein sourcing. In Latin America, many farms have not yet started supplementing with any protease, let alone MCP, Dr. Jorge Perez Palencia notes. “If we can increase adoption of not only protease supplementation but specifically MCP supplementation, this will allow Latin America farmers to quickly improve the economics of production.” The research results presented by Palencia at AMENA make a strong case not only for protease supplementation but for the specific type of MCP available today that can be most effective. The SDSU research was conducted in collaboration with CBS Bio Platforms, a leading science-based and innovation-focused company in the animal feed industry. Read more>> Science sheds light on power of multi-component protease
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