World’s leading carbon-negative materials company joins Merck, Amgen, and other winners

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has awarded Origin Materials, Inc. (“Origin” or “Origin Materials”) (NASDAQ: ORGN, ORGNW), the world’s leading carbon negative materials company with a mission to enable the world’s transition to sustainable materials, in partnership with Professor Mark Mascal of the University of California, Davis (“UC Davis”), its prestigious Green Chemistry Challenge Award in the category of Specific Environmental Benefit – Climate Change. Origin Materials and UC Davis together were one of just five 2022 Green Chemistry Challenge Award winners who were honored at a ceremony at the annual American Chemical Society Green Chemistry & Engineering Conference that is taking place in Reston, Virginia from June 6-8, 2022.

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The award recognizes the technology behind Origin’s patented platform for turning the carbon found in sustainable wood residues into useful materials for a wide range of end products, including clothing, textiles, plastics, packaging, car parts, tires, carpeting, toys, and more, while capturing carbon in the process. At commercial scale, this novel chemistry is expected to produce sustainable and recyclable carbon negative materials at a fraction of the cost of other bio-based technologies, making “net zero” possible and helping customers in a wide range of industries to meet their ESG and decarbonization goals.

Origin Co-founder & Co-CEO John Bissell and Co-founder & CTO Ryan Smith began collaborating with Professor Mascal while earning degrees in Chemical Engineering at UC Davis over a decade ago.

“Origin’s vision is a world where carbon-negative products and materials are the rule, not the exception, and our technology was built around converting low-cost, non-food, and sustainable feedstock into decarbonized, supply chain ready materials,” said Origin Materials Co-CEO John Bissell. “We are honored to earn the EPA Green Chemistry Challenge Award in partnership with Professor Mascal and the University of California, Davis, as we deploy our platform technology to make ‘net zero’ a reality for a growing number of customers and partners around the world.”

“Tackling environmental challenges like climate change and the disproportionate impact of pollution in communities with environmental justice concerns is going to take creative and innovation solutions – and sustainable, green chemistry is a critical part of that,” said EPA Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention Deputy Assistant Administrator Jennie Romer. “Preventing waste, reducing energy use, and avoiding hazardous chemicals, all of which we’re recognizing with our awards today, demonstrate the power and potential green chemistry has to protect human health and the environment while providing benefits to businesses and our economy.”

The EPA recognizes green chemistry as the design of chemical products and processes that reduce or eliminate the generation and use of hazardous substances. This year’s winners have developed new and innovative green chemistry technologies that provide solutions to significant environmental challenges, and spur innovation and economic development.

About Origin Materials

Headquartered in West Sacramento, Origin Materials is the world's leading carbon negative materials company. Origin’s mission is to enable the world’s transition to sustainable materials. For over a decade, Origin has developed a platform for turning the carbon found in inexpensive, plentiful, non-food biomass such as sustainable wood residues into useful materials while capturing carbon in the process. Origin’s patented technology platform can help revolutionize the production of a wide range of end products, including clothing, textiles, plastics, packaging, car parts, tires, carpeting, toys, and more with a ~$1 trillion addressable market. In addition, Origin’s technology platform is expected to provide stable pricing largely decoupled from the petroleum supply chain, which is exposed to more volatility than supply chains based on sustainable wood residues. Origin’s patented drop-in core technology, economics and carbon impact are supported by a growing list of major global customers and investors.

For more information, visit www.originmaterials.com.

About EPA’s Green Chemistry Challenge Awards

Since the inception of the awards more than a quarter century ago, EPA and the American Chemical Society, which co-sponsor the awards, have received more than 1,800 nominations and presented awards to 133 technologies that decrease hazardous chemicals and resources, reduce costs, protect public health, and spur economic growth. Winning technologies are responsible for annually reducing the use or generation of hundreds of millions of pounds of hazardous chemicals and saving billions of gallons of water and trillions of British thermal units (BTUs) in energy.

Cautionary Note on Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains certain forward-looking statements within the meaning of the federal securities laws. Forward-looking statements generally are accompanied by words such as “believe,” “may,” “will,” “estimate,” “continue,” “anticipate,” “intend,” “expect,” “should,” “would,” “plan,” “predict,” “potential,” “seem,” “seek,” “future,” “outlook,” and similar expressions that predict or indicate future events or trends or that are not statements of historical matters. These forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements regarding Origin Materials’ business strategy, estimated total addressable market and ability to realize the anticipated benefits of the Alliance and partner with others to build a circular global plastic value chain. These statements are based on various assumptions, whether or not identified in this press release, and on the current expectations of the management of Origin Materials and are not predictions of actual performance. These forward-looking statements are provided for illustrative purposes only and are not intended to serve as, and must not be relied on as, a guarantee, an assurance, a prediction, or a definitive statement of fact or probability. Actual events and circumstances are difficult or impossible to predict and will differ from assumptions. Many actual events and circumstances are beyond the control of Origin Materials. These forward-looking statements are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties, including that Origin Materials may be unable to successfully commercialize its products; the effects of competition on Origin Materials’ business; disruptions and other impacts to Origin Materials’ business as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic and other global health or economic crises; and those factors discussed in the Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q filed with the SEC on May 9, 2022 under the heading “Risk Factors,” and other documents Origin Materials has filed, or will file, with the SEC. If any of these risks materialize or our assumptions prove incorrect, actual results could differ materially from the results implied by these forward-looking statements. There may be additional risks that Origin Materials presently does not know, or that Origin Materials currently believes are immaterial, that could also cause actual results to differ from those contained in the forward-looking statements. In addition, forward-looking statements reflect Origin Materials’ expectations, plans, or forecasts of future events and views as of the date of this press release. Origin Materials anticipates that subsequent events and developments will cause its assessments to change. However, while Origin Materials may elect to update these forward-looking statements at some point in the future, Origin Materials specifically disclaim any obligation to do so. These forward-looking statements should not be relied upon as representing Origin Materials’ assessments of any date subsequent to the date of this press release. Accordingly, undue reliance should not be placed upon the forward-looking statements.

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