Benson Hill appoints Interim CEO and new director to the Board

Date:06-20-2023

Adrienne ″Deanie″ Elsner Appointed Interim Chief Executive Officer, Effective Immediately; Matt Crisp Resigning as Chief Executive Officer

Benson Hill, Inc. (NYSE: BHIL, the ″Company″ or ″Benson Hill″), a food tech company unlocking the natural genetic diversity of plants, announced that Adrienne ″Deanie″ Elsner has been appointed Interim Chief Executive Officer of the Company. Ms. Elsner succeeds Matt Crisp, who has agreed to resign as Chief Executive Officer, effective immediately. Mr. Crisp will serve as consultant to the Board for 12 months to ensure a smooth transition.

The Board is initiating a search process for the Company’s next permanent CEO. To assist in the process, the Board will retain an executive search firm to conduct a comprehensive search and will evaluate both internal and external candidates.

″On behalf of the Board of Directors, I’d like to thank Matt for his contributions to Benson Hill. Since co-founding the Company over a decade ago, Matt has helped establish Benson Hill’s vision and led the Company to where it is today,″ said Dan Jacobi, Chairman of the Benson Hill Board of Directors. ″The Board continues to focus on operational excellence and maximizing the long-term value of Benson Hill’s technology and products. We are grateful to have an established leader in Deanie step in as interim CEO during this important time. Deanie has significant operating experience and a record of delivering results in complex organizations. We are confident that she is the right person to lead the Company as we identify a permanent leader to take Benson Hill into its next phase.″

Mr. Crisp said, ″I co-founded Benson Hill with the goal of bringing necessary innovation and disruption that has been sorely lacking across the agri-food value chain. From attracting the best team in our industry, to developing best-in-class platforms like CropOS and Crop Accelerator, to acquiring key facilities and vertically integrating to achieve our go-to-market strategy, we have established a foundation for growth that is poised to reshape the future of food production. That said, as we focus on the execution required to navigate this operating landscape, the Board and I have agreed that now is the right time to begin transitioning Benson Hill’s leadership.″

Mr. Crisp continued, ″I know I am leaving the Company in capable hands, and I intend to work closely with Deanie to ensure a smooth transition for our stakeholders. It has been an honor to work alongside the creative and dedicated Benson Hill team, and I thank them for their commitment to Being Bold and supporting me and the Company for the past eleven years.″

″It is a privilege to take on the role of Interim CEO of Benson Hill,″ said Ms. Elsner. ″Benson Hill has grown tremendously since 2012, using its proprietary data and technology, making key investments to build out its unique model and bringing to market innovative products made better from the beginning. I look forward to working with the Board and the Benson Hill team to enable the Company to reach its full potential.″

Separately, Benson Hill today announced in a standalone press release the appointment of Richard Mack as an Independent Director to the Company’s Board of Directors, effective immediately. Mr. Mack brings nearly 30 years of agribusiness leadership experience to the Benson Hill Board.

About Deanie Elsner

Ms. Elsner is a business leader with a track-record of delivering transformational change across North American and International businesses. She recently served as President, Chief Executive Officer, and Director of Charlotte’s Web Holdings, Inc., a vertically integrated leader in hemp-derived CBD extract products, from 2019 to 2021. Prior to that, she served as President, U.S. Snacks, Kellogg Company. Before that, she worked with notable companies in the consumer products industry including Kraft Foods, Quaker Oats, Johnson & Johnson and Procter & Gamble. Ms. Elsner serves on the Board of Directors for Owens Corning, a Fortune 500 industrial manufacturing company. She previously served on the board of the Ad Council. Ms. Elsner received an MBA in Finance and Marketing from the University of Chicago and a Bachelor of Science in Business from the University of Arizona.

Agriculture Industry Executive Brings Nearly Three Decades of Experience to Benson Hill Board

Benson Hill also announced that it has appointed Richard Mack as an Independent Director to the Company’s Board of Directors, effective immediately. Mr. Mack will serve on the Board’s Audit and Risk Committee and Compensation Committee. With his appointment, the Board will comprise nine directors, seven of whom are independent.

Mr. Mack brings nearly 30 years of leadership experience to the Benson Hill Board. Mr. Mack previously served as Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of The Mosaic Company, a global leader in the crop nutrient industry and a Fortune 500 company. Mosaic was formed through the spin-off and merger of Cargill Inc.’s fertilizer business units with IMC Global Inc. in 2004, which Mr. Mack served as a founding executive.

″Rich is a highly respected industry executive with a record of building and growing companies in the agribusiness industry. We are pleased to welcome him to the Benson Hill Board,″ said Daniel Jacobi, Chairman of the Benson Hill Board of Directors. ″We look forward to benefiting from his deep experience and expertise in finance and advancing strategic initiatives. We are confident that he is well suited to support our Board and guide the management team in executing our strategic goals and delivering value for shareholders.″

Mr. Mack said, ″I am honored to join the Benson Hill Board and help the Company in its efforts to disrupt the traditional agriculture industry and promote sustainable farming practices. Benson Hill is an innovative company, and I admire how the Company uses its proprietary technology and unique model to empower its farmer partners, ingredient food manufacturers and retailers to promote sustainable food for consumers on a global scale. I look forward to working alongside the Board to help position Benson Hill to deliver on its mission to create shareholder value by making food that is better from the beginning.″

About Richard Mack

Richard (Rich) Mack is an experienced, entrepreneurial business executive with significant expertise in the finance and agricultural industry.

He was a founding executive of The Mosaic Company, holding various senior executive posts from its formation in 2004 until he left the Company in 2018 as its Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer. Under his leadership at Mosaic, Mr. Mack oversaw business operations in eight countries with over 10,000 employees and was instrumental in overseeing and developing the company’s corporate strategy, finances, and key operational and employee matters. Mr. Mack was also the founder and visionary of Streamsong Resort. Prior to his tenure at Mosaic, Mr. Mack served as corporate counsel to Cargill, Inc., an international producer and marketer of food, agricultural, financial, and industrial products and services, and was a co-founder of Cargill’s corporate venture capital arm. Mr. Mack currently serves on the board of directors of Titan Machinery Inc., the largest global dealer of Case IH and New Holland agriculture and construction equipment, and H.J. Baker and Bros., LLC, a global sulfur trading and logistics company.

Mr. Mack received an M.B.A. from Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management, a J.D. from Hamline University and a B.S. from Moorhead State University.