Henry Monroe "Hank" Beachell (September 21, 1906 – December 13, 2006) was an American plant breeder.

His research led to the development of hybrid rice cultivars that saved millions of people around the world from starvation.

[3] After obtaining a Master's degree at Kansas State University, Beachell worked for the U.S. Department of Agriculture in Texas.

He created a high-yielding rice variety IR8 in 1964, based on the previous work by Peter Jennings (no relations to the US journalists).

[1] As a centenarian, Beachell consulted with RiceTec, the only commercial hybrid rice-breeding program in the U.S, up until his death.