BENSON HILL LAUNCHES TRUVAIL™ SOY PROTEIN INGREDIENT PORTFOLIO FEATURING UNIQUE SUSTAINABILITY BENEFITS FOR BROAD FOOD APPLICATION

ST. LOUIS, Feb. 10, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Benson Hill, Inc. (NYSE: BHIL, the "Company" or "Benson Hill"), a food tech company unlocking the natural genetic diversity of plants, today announced the launch of TruVail™, a new line of domestically sourced, non-GMO plant-based protein ingredients with unique sustainability benefits. The TruVail™ brand's initial offering includes high protein soy flour, a less processed equivalent to soy protein concentrate (SPC), and texturized proteins for broad use across traditional soy protein applications as well as rapidly growing alternative plant-based protein markets.

TruVail™ ingredients are sourced from Benson Hill's proprietary Ultra-High Protein (UHP) soybeans, reducing the need for additional processing steps typically required to concentrate protein levels. The resulting less processed, value-added ingredient can serve as a more sustainable alternative to commodity soy protein concentrate (SPC) and can require up to 70% less water and up to 50% less CO₂e to produce than SPC.¹ Benson Hill works with farmers to grow its identity preserved UHP soybean varieties with an emphasis on regenerative agriculture practices, enabling sustainability benefits from farm to fork.

"Better ingredients start with better beans. Whereas food manufacturers are usually relegated to use whatever limited ingredients the commodity system has to offer, TruVail™ ingredients are sourced from soybeans specifically designed with consumer interests in mind," said Bruce Bennett, President of Benson Hill's Ingredients Business. "With TruVail™ high protein ingredients, food companies can count on great taste, functionality, and quality while delivering more sustainable products with closed-loop traceability and less processing."

Benson Hill combines seed innovation with closed loop farming and ingredient production to create an integrated supply chain model. This provides a single point of contact and improved transparency for CPG customers, unlocking novel benefits across an otherwise siloed food system. The ingredient manufacturing capabilities of the recently acquired Creston, IA facility complete the integrated model, enabling Benson Hill to immediately deliver a reliable supply of its TruVail™ portfolio for multiple food applications. This includes established markets for soy-based ingredients, such as snacks, baked goods, and meat extension as well as applications within the rapidly growing protein alternatives market for meat, dairy, frozen desserts, and other applications. 

"The nutrient density advantage of TruVail™ ingredients offers food manufacturers a seamless solution for multiple product development needs," said Kurt Long, VP, Proteins, Benson Hill. "Formulating with TruVail™ ingredients at lower inclusion rates creates the taste and texture consumers crave and can generate potential cost savings for various applications. Formulating with TruVail™ at higher rates can produce equally nutritious, animal-free products compatible with many manufacturers' cleaner label programs. The application of TruVail™ ingredients as a less processed replacement for SPC delivers cost and environmental advantages while avoiding SPC supply constraints facing the rapidly expanding plant-based protein market."

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.

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 plant-based protein market, statements regarding the expected future performance of our technology and integrated business model, statements regarding the anticipated financial performance and benefits of our proprietary soybean varieties and TruVail™ ingredients portfolio, including their potential advantages to customers. 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, risks associated with our ability to grow and manage growth profitably, our ability to execute our business plans and leverage our technology, our transition to becoming a public company, 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.

Benson Hill
Media Contact
Melanie Bernds
314-605-6363
[email protected]
Media Kit

Investor Contact
Ruben Mella
314-714-6313
[email protected]

¹ On a per kilogram of protein basis, based on preliminary Life Cycle Assessment results conducted by Blonk Consultants (April 2021).

SOURCE Benson Hill