BioMar Sources Benson Hill Ingredients to Boost Sustainability of High-Performance Aquafeed

ST. LOUIS–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Benson Hill, Inc. (NYSE: BHIL, the “Company” or “Benson Hill”), a food tech company unlocking the natural genetic diversity of plants, and Denmark-based BioMar, a global leader in sustainable aquaculture feed solutions, today announced a strategic collaboration to leverage Benson Hill soy and further assess its sustainability impact on high-performance aquafeed formulations.

BioMar is sourcing consecutive seasons of Benson Hill ingredients as part of its commitment to build restorative soy supply chains. Feed holds the primary cost in the farming of aquaculture and is the major contributor to its carbon footprint. Benson Hill advances sustainability goals throughout the ingredient development process – from monitoring regenerative and deforestation-free practices on the farm to producing ingredients that reduce water and energy-intensive protein concentrating steps in processing. Together the companies are assessing how the advantages of Benson Hill ingredients advance BioMar’s sustainability program and reduce the impact of aquaculture farming for BioMar customers.

“BioMar has made a commitment to reduce the impacts of our feeds, and 97 percent of the carbon footprint comes from the feed ingredients,” said Morten Holdorff Møjbæk, Global Sourcing Director, BioMar Group. “With our exit last year from the Russian raw material market, it was important for us to find suppliers committed to working with us to ensure we deliver on our responsible sourcing ambitions. Benson Hill’s closed-loop business model, robust U.S. farmer network, and ability to trace back to seed make them an ideal collaborator.”

The companies expect this collaboration to demonstrate that reducing carbon emissions in the world’s fastest-growing protein sector and meeting market demands for traceability can be achieved at the same time. Consumption of blue foods continues to rise around the world. According to the Food and Agriculture Organization, global consumption of blue foods (excluding algae) has increased at an average annual rate of 3.0 percent since 1961, compared with a population growth rate of 1.6 percent. In 2020, global aquaculture production reached a record 122.6 million tons.

“By working with a global leader like BioMar, we can help accelerate ongoing efforts in the industry to stand up fully deforestation-free supply chains and decrease the carbon footprint of products consumers love,” said Matt Crisp, Chief Executive Officer of Benson Hill. “Through this joint effort, Benson Hill and BioMar will be able to further research how high-protein, low-oligosaccharide, plant-based ingredients perform in aquaculture feed at scale, and potentially slash carbon emissions in that supply chain. Stewarding our planetary resources is essential on the journey to accelerate transformation in the global aquaculture industry.”

According to the FAIRR Initiative, a collaborative investor network that raises awareness of the material Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) risks and opportunities caused by intensive animal protein production, aquafeed production is “associated with the extraction of vast quantities of wild fish, which can lead to overexploitation of stocks.” Research shows raw materials, ethically derived from high-protein soy, can begin to alleviate this issue. Separately, Benson Hill recently achieved the ProTerra Certification, validating the ESG principles guiding its work to deliver non-GMO ingredients to markets within and outside the United States.

BioMar is being supplied innovative Benson Hill ingredients by Denofa, an experienced leader in non-GMO soy supply chains that is managing sales and distribution of Benson Hill’s aquafeed portfolio in Northern Europe. In April 2022, Benson Hill and Denofa announced a plan to form a strategic alliance to introduce sustainable soy protein ingredients into the Northern European aquaculture feed market. For more information on how Benson Hill’s ingredients are uniquely suited to the aquaculture industry, please visit https://bensonhill.com/aquafeed.

About Benson Hill

Benson Hill moves food forward with the CropOS^® platform, a cutting-edge food innovation engine that combines data science and machine learning with biology and genetics. Benson Hill empowers innovators to unlock nature’s genetic diversity from plant to plate, with the purpose of creating nutritious, great-tasting food and ingredient options that are both widely accessible and sustainable. More information can be found at bensonhill.com or on Twitter at @bensonhillinc.

About BioMar

BioMar are innovators in high performance aquaculture feed dedicated to doing our part in creating a healthy and sustainable global aquaculture industry. BioMar operates 17 feed factories across the globe in Norway, Chile, Denmark, Scotland, Spain, France, Greece, Turkey, China, Vietnam, Costa Rica, Ecuador, and Australia. Worldwide, we supply feed to around 90 countries and for more than 45 different species. BioMar is wholly owned by the Danish industrial group Schouw & Co, which is listed on the NASDAQ, Copenhagen. Learn more about the company’s purpose and BioMar Group at www.biomar.com.

About Denofa

Denofa AS was established May 10, 1912, based on a German patent utilizing whale oil for edible purposes. Later Denofa became a large edible oils and fats buyer and refiner, exporting marine and vegetable oil worldwide. Today Denofa owns and operates a non-GMO soy crushing plant located in Fredrikstad, Norway. Denofa processes exclusively non-GMO, sustainable and certified soybeans into soy meal, soy oil and lecithin. Denofa’s position is built on a sustainable value chain and food safety. Denofa soy meal is sold to the feed market, mainly in Norway, Sweden, and Finland. Denofa soy oil and lecithin are sold to the European market as ingredients for feed and food. Denofa is owned by Amaggi, a leading Brazilian producer and exporter of non-GMO soy.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

Certain statements in this press release may be considered “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Forward-looking statements generally relate to future events or the Company’s future financial or operating performance and may be identified by words such as “may,” “should,” “expect,” “intend,” “will,” “estimate,” “anticipate,” “believe,” “predict,” or similar words. These forward-looking statements are based upon assumptions made by the Company as of the date hereof and are subject to risks, uncertainties, and other factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements include, among other things, statements regarding our strategy and our plans for growth, statements regarding expectations about the markets in which we participate, including the global aquaculture market, statements regarding the expected future performance of our technology and integrated business model, statements regarding the anticipated benefits of our proprietary soybean varieties, including their potential advantages to BioMar and the aquaculture supply chain, and statements regarding the anticipated benefits of our collaboration with BioMar. Factors that may cause actual results to differ materially from current expectations include, but are not limited to, risks associated with successfully realizing the anticipated advantages of using our proprietary soybean varieties and CropOS^® technology platform to serve BioMar and the aquaculture supply chain, risks associated with our ability to grow and manage growth profitably, our ability to execute our business plans and leverage our technology, and other risks and uncertainties set forth in the sections entitled “Risk Factors” and “Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements” in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”), which are available on the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov. We expressly disclaim any duty to update these forward-looking statements, except as otherwise required by law.