Benson Hill Co-Founder Announces Departure

The co-founder of the biotech firm Benson Hill is leaving the company.  The St Louis-based company announced Friday that Matt Crisp had agreed to step down as CEO and leave the board of directors effective immediately.  In the company’s statement, Crisp said that he had co-founded Benson Hill 11 years ago with the goal of, “bringing necessary innovation and disruption that has been sorely lacking across the agri-food value chain.”  He went on to say that the company has, “established a foundation for growth that is poised to reshape the future of food production.”  Crisp added that he and the Board agreed that with a need to focus on the company’s next steps, the time was now to begin a leadership transition.

The company announced Adrienne “Deanie” Elsner as its interim CEO while a search process for a permanent replacement begins.  Elsner recently served as President and CEO of a CBD extract firm after spending time with several major food companies including Kraft Foods and Quaker Oats.  Benson Hill also named Richard Mack, a founding executive of The Mosaic Company, to its board of directors.  As part of the transition, Crisp has agreed to serve as a consultant to the board over the next 12 months.