The Missouri Technology Corporation (MTC) has announced a $175,000 investment in agricultural biotechnology startup company and BRDG Park tenant, Benson Hill Biosystems.
Founded in 2012, Benson Hill Biosystems is dedicated to delivering substantial production gains to the agriculture sector by advancing biotech-based traits designed to increase intrinsic yield.
“Missouri is the place to be for budding tech companies and we’re excited to announce Benson Hill Biosystems as our newest partner,” said Bill Anderson, Acting Executive Director of the Missouri Technology Corporation. “Missouri’s extensive plant science resources and world class talent provides the infrastructure for high tech companies to grow and succeed. And Benson Hill’s decision to locate here further solidifies that.”
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The company, led by Matthew B. Crisp, President & CEO, Dr. Thomas P. Brutnell, Chief Scientific Officer and Director of the Enterprise Institute for Renewable Fuels at the Danforth Center, and Dr. Todd C. Mockler, Chief Technology Officer and the Geraldine J. and Robert L. Virgil Distinguished Investigator at the Danforth Center, established roots at BRDG Park on February 1, 2013.
“St. Louis benefits our company beyond just funding. The science community and the relationship between the Danforth Center and BRDG Park are key ingredients to our success,” said Matt Crisp. “BRDG Park and Danforth Center’s technologies and infrastructure open opportunities for us to invest our capital in running numerous experiments to rapidly grow our business.”
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Benson Hill is basing its work on technology developed at the Donald Danforth Plant Science Center and is also licensing technology from other institutions to build a strong intellectual property portfolio.
“We are combining technologies and approaches such as biology systems, bioinformatics, synthetic biology and next-generation phenotyping to increase intrinsic yields,” said Todd Mockler. “We are using a multi-gene approach to engineer a plant’s metabolism that will be applied to crucial crops like corn, soybeans, wheat, cotton and rice. Now is the time to apply this technology commercially to sustainably meet the global demand for food and energy.”
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