Eurofins strengthens its footprint with the acquisition of Exova’s food, water and pharmaceutical products testing laboratories in the UK & Ireland

Eurofins Scientific (EUFI.PA), a world leader in bioanalytical testing, announces that it has signed an agreement to acquire Exova's food, water and pharmaceutical testing business in the UK & Ireland, comprising 10 laboratories, for approximately  GBP 18m, subject to closing adjustments. The transaction is expected to be completed in July, upon fulfilment of customary closing conditions.

Collectively, the 10 laboratories employ more than 300 staff and are expected to generate revenues in excess of EUR 20m in 2016. Of the 10 laboratories, 3 are for food testing, 5 for water testing, and 2 for pharmaceutical products testing.

Exova's food and water testing laboratories should reinforce Eurofins' existing footprint as well as expand client reach in the UK and Ireland. The food testing laboratories provide safety testing with a strong competence in microbiology, as well as nutritional analysis, for both food manufacturers and retailers, whilst the water testing laboratories serve local authorities and consultants. The acquisition of these laboratories reinforces Eurofins' distribution channel for its wide range of analytical services. In return, the laboratories will have access to the entire Eurofins portfolio of services and infrastructure, and benefit from the Group's logistical network, thereby allowing them to further penetrate their respective local markets, and increase their share of their clients' testing spend.

The transaction also includes the acquisition of 2 cGMP* laboratories offering quality control (QC) analytical services to medium to large pharmaceutical clients. This provides Eurofins with an entry platform to deploy its market-leading biopharmaceutical products testing capabilities to support the thriving pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries in the UK.

Comment from Dr. Gilles Martin, Eurofins CEO: "These laboratories represent a good strategic fit for Eurofins as they reinforce our food and water testing footprint in the UK and Ireland, and give us a foothold to roll-out our globally-renowned competencies in pharmaceutical products testing in the UK, where we did not yet have a laboratory in this business line. I believe that this transaction is very positive for both Eurofins and Exova, as it enables each party to focus its resources and leadership on their core areas of testing. By enabling more focused investments and access to a global portfolio of tests and technologies, as well as higher economies of scale, this should also be a very positive development for clients and other stakeholders in the UK and Ireland."

*cGMP - Current Good Manufacturing Practices

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Notes for the editor:

Eurofins - a global leader in bio-analysis

Eurofins Scientific believes it is the world leader in food, environment and pharmaceutical products testing, as well as one of the global market leaders in agroscience, genomics, discovery pharmacology and central laboratory services. In addition, Eurofins is one of the key emerging players in specialty clinical diagnostic testing in Europe and the USA.

With over 23,000 staff in more than 225 laboratories across 39 countries, Eurofins offers a portfolio of over 130,000 validated analytical methods for evaluating the safety, identity, composition, authenticity, origin, traceability and purity of biological substances and products, as well as for innovative clinical diagnostic. The Group provides its customers with high-quality services, accurate results on time and expert advice by its highly qualified staff.

Eurofins is committed to pursuing its dynamic growth strategy by expanding both its technology portfolio and its geographic reach. Through R&D and acquisitions, the Group draws on the latest developments in the field of biotechnology and analytical chemistry to offer its clients unique analytical solutions and the most comprehensive range of testing methods.

As one of the most innovative and quality oriented international players in its industry, Eurofins is ideally positioned to support its clients' increasingly stringent quality and safety standards and the expanding demands of regulatory authorities and healthcare practitioners around the world.

The shares of Eurofins Scientific are listed on the Euronext Paris Stock Exchange (ISIN FR0000038259, Reuters EUFI.PA,
Bloomberg ERF FP).

Important disclaimer:

This press release contains forward-looking statements and estimates that involve risks and uncertainties. The forward-looking statements and estimates contained herein represent the judgement of Eurofins Scientific’ management as of the date of this release. These forward-looking statements are not guarantees for future performance, and the forward-looking events discussed in this release may not occur. Eurofins Scientific disclaims any intent or obligation to update any of these forward-looking statements and estimates. All statements and estimates are made based on the information available to the Company’s management as of the date of publication, but no guarantee can be made as to their validity.