Eurofins has folded ABICH's cosmetics and personal care testing operations in Italy and Canada into its global Eurofins Cosmetics & Personal Care (C&PC) network, while adding three packaging laboratories — Ecol Studio, 3A Laboratori and Sepack Lab — to its Consumer Product Testing (CPT) division, the Paris-headquartered testing group confirmed.

The transactions mark Eurofins' latest move to consolidate independent testing capacity under a single contract for multinational brands, and arrive as more beauty and personal-care manufacturers route efficacy, safety and packaging work through external laboratories.

What does the ABICH deal add to Eurofins C&PC?

The acquisitions of ABICH Italy and ABICH Canada bring the following capabilities under the Eurofins C&PC banner:

• Clinical studies
• Efficacy testing
• Sunscreen testing
• Analytical chemistry
• Microbiology
• Regulatory support
• In vitro testing

The deal also pulls ABICH's adjacencies — medical devices, food supplements and pet care — into Eurofins' portfolio, letting brands running cross-category product portfolios negotiate one master agreement instead of several separate ones. For Eurofins C&PC clients in North America and southern Europe, the Italian and Canadian labs add geographic reach and reduce the lead-time risk that has dogged single-site programmes.

Sunscreen testing stands out for brands substantiating SPF and UVA-protection claims. The microbiology bench shortens turnaround for preservative-efficacy and challenge tests on the critical path before product release, while the in vitro offering supports the safety work brands now require under non-animal testing frameworks.

A Eurofins spokesperson said: "By combining ABICH's recognised expertise with Eurofins' global network of laboratories, we continue to expand our ability to support brands throughout the entire product development lifecycle, from safety and regulatory compliance to efficacy substantiation and claim support."

How does the packaging side fit?

On the packaging side, Eurofins CPT acquired Ecol Studio, 3A Laboratori and Sepack Lab to reinforce testing across:

• Packaging performance
• Material characterisation
• Food contact materials (FCM)
• Consulting services
• Innovation support

Food-contact work addresses what Eurofins called "increasingly complex packaging challenges". A pack that crosses cosmetics, food supplements and pet food lines must satisfy migration and material-safety rules under multiple regulatory frameworks, and a single laboratory that can carry a pack across those lines removes the repeat-testing burden that often delays launches.

Eurofins CPT said: "The integration of these laboratories strengthens Eurofins CPT's capabilities across the packaging lifecycle, combining scientific testing, technical consulting and innovation support to help customers develop safe, compliant and sustainable packaging solutions while accelerating market readiness."

What it means for procurement, formulators and compliance teams

For procurement leads, the message is consolidation: six laboratories now sit under one master services agreement rather than separate purchase orders in three countries. Negotiating leverage improves when sunscreen, microbiology, regulatory and packaging work all sit inside one contract rather than four.

For regulatory affairs and formulators, the additions translate to fewer hand-offs between clinical, analytical and packaging test programs. That is a recurring pain point when efficacy claims, micro data and packaging migration results must converge in a single dossier for regulators and retailers.

Independent laboratories of the size Eurofins absorbed have become rarer in Europe. The ABICH footprint gives Eurofins an Italian and a Canadian presence to complement its existing network, while Ecol Studio, 3A Laboratori and Sepack Lab add depth on the packaging side without overlapping ABICH's clinical focus.

The next data points to watch are integration milestones for the ABICH Canada site, expected service-menu rollouts under Eurofins C&PC, and any announced expansion of in vitro endpoints as animal-testing timelines compress under the EU ban and parallel US state rules.