ST. LOUIS — Benson Hill, Inc. said it is poised to deliver new soybean varieties in coming years that will deliver advantaged traits for end users in larger soy markets such as animal feed, soybean oil and biofuels.
Outlining its goals, the seed innovation company said its technology-driven focus on optimizing yield, protein and oil in the soybean genome would address the disconnect between current soy composition and its intended uses.
For example, “dual-value beans,” soybean varieties that can simultaneously deliver improved soybean meal with either better quality oil for consumption or improved oil for the emerging biofuels market, are advancing rapidly in Benson Hill’s pipeline alongside product candidates that push the limits of protein and yield.
“The rate at which we’ve increased yield, boosted protein and expanded maturity zones since 2019 is far beyond what I have seen in the industry and is a direct result of our technology and focus,” said Jason Bull, chief technology officer of Benson Hill. “Our upcoming innovations are designed to hit purpose-driven outcomes such as better digestibility, higher feed energy density and improved oils. We believe these technology advances will create significant value downstream.”
Bull outlined three focus areas for Benson Hill’s pipeline through 2032:
- Enhance varieties for near-term impact in animal feed (projected launches in 2024 to 2027): By increasing the yield potential and expanding geographic maturities for its proprietary genetics grown across the United States, Benson Hill said it can deliver better soybeans for feed applications, such as poultry, by increasing the protein and metabolizable energy. Bull said he expects the expanded maturities in the company’s innovation pipeline to allow more soybean farmers and seed partners to utilize its proprietary portfolio.
As shared in its first-quarter earnings update, the company said it will continue to pursue broadacre expansion in feed and fuel, and expects to broaden its soybean portfolio to about 35 varieties by 2025. Non-GMO, Ultra-High Protein Low-Oligosaccharide (UHP-LO) soybean varieties, destined for animal feed, are expected to yield on par with elite GMO commercial varieties by 2026 to 2027, with herbicide-tolerant varieties slated for 2026.
- Improve oil for biofuels and crude oil soy markets (projected launches in 2028 to 2030): Benson Hill is preparing to introduce a range of soybean varieties for biofuels and crude oil applications by the end of the decade. Using years of field testing and genomic data, researchers recently identified promising variety candidates in the pipeline that could serve a total addressable domestic market of about 50 million US soybean acres. Benson Hill said this initiative underscores its commitment to sustainability and highlights how soybeans can play a role in advancing renewable energy solutions.
- Further expand value creation for animal feed with new soy quality traits (projected launches in 2032 and beyond): Benson Hill is aiming to expand value creation in animal feed with high-yielding soybean varieties that will feature higher energy density, better protein quality, improved oil and reduced anti-nutritional factors, which can deliver significant downstream benefits for the animal feed industry.
Benson Hill credited its proprietary genetics, artificial intelligence-driven CropOS and the Crop Accelerator, a rapid prototyping facility, for its soybean seed advancements. Today the company offers 22 commercial soybean varieties leveraging the germplasm it acquired in 2019.
“With the depth of our soybean data, our proprietary soy germplasm, and the millions of data points we analyze, we believe we can solve problems for the soy end user with unmatched precision and speed,” said Deanie Elsner, chief executive officer of Benson Hill. “Whether we are creating more nutritious soybean meal or delivering improved oil, Benson Hill is poised to elevate the standard for US soy over the next decade.”
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