Agtech firm invests $7M in St. Louis-area expansion, adding 40 jobs

By Gloria Lloyd | St. Louis Business Journal | Apr 28, 2026

An agtech company is expanding its footprint in the St. Louis region with more than $7 million in new investment and plans to add more than 40 jobs. 

Agricultural technology company Pivot Bio said Tuesday it will establish an operations and manufacturing hub in Hazelwood and a research, development and innovation center in Creve Coeur’s 39 North AgTech Innovation District. Together, the facilities are intended to support production, packaging, distribution and continued development of Pivot Bio’s crop nutrition products.

Pivot Bio is developing and commercializing crop nutrition technology it says is more climate friendly and efficient to use than existing options for growers, focused on microbial-based alternatives to traditional synthetic nitrogen fertilizers. The firm was founded in 2011 in California.

Pivot Bio said the expansion comes as farmers face rising fertilizer costs and market volatility, prompting the company to increase U.S.-based manufacturing capacity and supply reliability. 

“We’re focused on helping bring more certainty back to the farm,” Pivot Bio CEO Chris Abbott said in a statement. “By investing in U.S.-based innovation and production in the Greater St. Louis area, we’re strengthening our ability to deliver reliable nitrogen solutions at scale.”

In Hazelwood, Pivot Bio is expanding operations that support manufacturing, packaging and distribution, as well as customer service functions. The company said the expanded footprint will allow products to be produced and shipped more efficiently to growers nationwide.

The Creve Coeur facility will house Pivot Bio’s research and development work, bringing scientists and engineers together to advance microbial nitrogen technology. The site is located near major agtech research institutions, including the Donald Danforth Plant Science Center.

Pivot Bio made St. Louis a key hub of its operations in 2023 with the opening of a $20 million, 48,000-square-foot Product Success Center at 639 Lambert Pointe Drive in Hazelwood, which is used to manufacture its products that replace synthetic fertilizers for crops. It also previously had two lab spaces at BRDG Park on the campus of the Donald Danforth Plant Science Center in Creve Coeur.

Emily Lohse-Busch, executive director of 39 North, said Pivot Bio’s presence strengthens the region’s agtech ecosystem and connects the company to talent and research partners.

State and local leaders said in a news release that the investment underscores Missouri’s growing role as an agtech hub. Gov. Mike Kehoe said in a statement that the expansion reflects the state’s skilled workforce and business environment, while Hazelwood Mayor Matt Robinson called the project further validation of the city as a destination for industrial and technology growth.

New positions created through the expansion are expected to pay wages above the county average, the Missouri Department of Economic Development said. Pivot Bio will participate in the Missouri Works program, which offers incentives tied to job creation and expansion. The agtech firm is estimated by the state to receive $928,137 in Missouri Works incentives over five years, if they meet the program requirements, a state spokeswoman said.

Pivot Bio, then headquartered in Berkeley, California, said in May 2025 that it would relocate its headquarters and research and development operations to the Midwest. The firm said last month that it would be headquartered in Minneapolis, in part for proximity to farms and producers. 

Pivot Bio develops microbial crop nutrition products designed to provide nitrogen directly to plants during the growing season. Its products are currently sold in North America, with plans to expand into Brazil.

The company marked the expansion with an event Tuesday attended by state and local officials, business leaders and members of the agricultural sector.