(Iowa Capital Dispatch) – A St. Louis-based company with an Iowa grain dealer license has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.  Iowa farmers with unpaid grain sold to Benson Hill Holdings, Inc. prior to March 20, can file a claim for indemnity, according to the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship.  Don McDowell, communications director for IDALS, said the department is not “immediately aware” of any affected farmers.

The grain indemnity fund will pay farmers 90% of their loss, up to $300,000, though claims related to Benson Hill must be mailed or personally delivered to IDALS’s Grain Warehouse Bureau by July 18.  The fund was established by the Iowa Legislature in 1986 and accrues via a per-bushel fee on purchased grain and fees on licensed warehouses and grain dealers.

According to minutes from the Iowa Grain Indemnity Fund Board, the balance of the fund as of Feb. 19 was $8.4 million. Benson Hill filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy March 20 and has up to $11 million in debtor-in-possession financing to continue its day-to-day operations.  Christi Dixon, a spokesperson for the seed innovation company, said it is “restructuring” its finances. “We will continue to meet our contractual commitments and support key farmers without interruption,” Dixon said in an email.

Trucks deliver harvested grain in western Iowa. (Photo by Jared Strong/Iowa Capital Dispatch)

Dixon said the company maintains a seed processing facility in Bondurant and employs seven people in Iowa. Benson Hill previously owned a soy processing facility in Creston, but sold the facility in February 2024 to White River Nutrition.

McDowell said the grain license for Benson Hill included locations in Cherokee and Galva.