Investor Relations

Mirel DP9002 Removes Nitrates to Improve Water Quality for Fish and Other Marine Life

CAMBRIDGE, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Telles, a joint venture between Metabolix, Inc. (NASDAQ: MBLX) and Archer Daniels Midland Company, today announced that Reef Interests, an innovative provider of home aquarium systems located in the Netherlands, is launching a biodegradable product based on Mirel™ DP9002 for managing waste generated in aquariums and marine environments. The product will be sold throughout the U.S., Europe, Russia, China and other key markets.

Nitrates generated as waste products from fish foods and other sources can rapidly build up in fish tanks, overpowering the denitrification organisms. By activating existing microbes that are present in the aquarium, Mirel initiates a more efficient denitrification process that helps improve water quality.

"Keeping waste products such as nitrate and phosphate under control is often a difficult task, which requires expensive and complex filtration systems," said J.P. ten Klooster, Chief Executive Officer at Reef Interests. "We found that the Mirel solution provides long term and efficient control of nitrate levels."

"Mirel continues to open up a number of new market opportunities for Telles, from compost bags to packaging solutions, and now marine applications including denitrification," said Bob Engle, Telles general manager. "With Reef Interests, we are bringing an efficient and long-lasting denitrification solution to consumers in the home aquarium market. By creating a safe and highly effective process for water denitrification, Telles will work with its partners to expand Mirel's applications for marine environments."

Mirel is biodegradable in marine environments in accordance with ASTM D7081 for marine-biodegradable non-floating plastics. This standard specification, along with the standard method ASTM 6691 for determining aerobic biodegradation of plastic materials in the marine environment, was developed at the U.S. Army Natick Soldier Research, Development and Engineering Center (NSRDEC) in Natick, Massachusetts, with support from the U.S. Navy and the Waste Reduction Afloat Protects the Sea (WRAPS) Program. Metabolix has worked with NSRDEC using Mirel PHA to help qualify the biodegradation of water-resistant yet marine-biodegradable bioplastics.

About Reef Interests

Reef Interests was founded in 2008 as a company dedicated to optimizing the sustainable aquaculture and husbandry of marine animals. Reef Interests provides feeds and life support systems designed to facilitate the aquaculture and husbandry of a wide array of marine organisms. Our products are used by aquaculture facilities, public aquaria, zoos and private aquarists. For more information about local vendors, please visit the official website of Reef Interests, www.reefinterests.com.

About Mirel Bioplastics

Mirel is a family of bioplastic materials that have physical properties comparable to petroleum-based resins, yet are biobased and biodegradable in natural soil and water environments, in home composting systems and in industrial composting facilities where such facilities are available. The rate and extent of Mirel's biodegradability will depend on the size and shape of the articles made from it. However, like nearly all bioplastics and organic matter, Mirel is not designed to biodegrade in conventional landfills.

Commercial grades of Mirel are available for injection molding, thermoforming, sheet extrusion and film applications. For more information, please visit www.mirelplastics.com.

About Metabolix

Founded in 1992, Metabolix, Inc. is an innovation-driven bioscience company focused on providing sustainable solutions for the world's needs for plastics, chemicals and energy. The Company is taking a systems approach, from gene to end product, integrating sophisticated biotechnology with advanced industrial practice. Metabolix is now developing and commercializing Mirel™, a family of high performance bioplastics which are biobased and biodegradable alternatives to many petroleum-based plastics, through Telles, a joint venture between Metabolix and Archer Daniels Midland Company. Metabolix is also developing a proprietary platform technology for co-producing plastics, chemicals and energy, from crops such as switchgrass, oilseeds and sugarcane.

For more information, please visit www.metabolix.com. (MBLX-G)

Safe Harbor for Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements which are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. The forward-looking statements in this release do not constitute guarantees of future performance. Investors are cautioned that statements in this press release which are not strictly historical statements, including, without limitation, statements regarding expectations for Mirel market demand, constitute forward-looking statements. Such forward-looking statements are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those anticipated and are detailed in Metabolix's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Metabolix assumes no obligation to update any forward-looking information contained in this press release or with respect to the announcements described herein.

Media:
Schwartz Communications
Keith Giannini or Jen Barlow
781-684-0770
metabolix@schwartzcomm.com
or
Investors:
ICR
James Palczynski, 203-682-8229
james.palczynski@icrinc.com

Source: Metabolix, Inc.

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