Bunzl agrees to buy German cleaning and hygiene business Hygi.de

Bunzl said on Tuesday that the acquisition of Hygi.de, an online distributor of cleaning and hygiene products, represented "an important milestone" for the group, materially increasing its presence in the large German market.

Hygi.de generated revenues of €107.0m in 2021 and an operating margin above the group average. Completion of the acquisition was still subject to competition authority clearance.

Elsewhere, the FTSE 100-listed firm said its acquisition of USL, a New Zealand distributor of medical consumables to the healthcare sector had completed earlier in the month, further complementing the company's growing presence in the country. USL generated revenue in 2021 of NZD $114.0m (£59.0m).

Chief executive Frank van Zanten said: "I am truly excited about the acquisition of the successful online distributor Hygi, as this marks a significant step in the development of our business in Germany, a market which has the potential to be more sizeable for Bunzl.

"Furthermore, acquiring USL increases Bunzl's position in the growing and attractive healthcare consumables market in New Zealand. These acquisitions highlight Bunzl's continued consolidation opportunity, which is supported by the strength of our balance sheet and an active pipeline."

As of 0800 BST, Bunzl shares were up 0.53% at 2,659.0p.

Reporting by Iain Gilbert at Sharecast.com