Oliver Healthcare Packaging, a supplier of sterile barrier flexible packaging solutions to the global healthcare market, has announced the acquisition of EK-Pack Folien.

The acquisition includes Vacopack H. Buchegger AG, a fully owned subsidiary of EK-Pack, based in north-eastern Switzerland.

As part of the agreement, Oliver will acquire the EK-Pack facility, which has 23,000m² of manufacturing space with eight production lines for multi-layer film and foil laminations.

The company will also acquire the Vacopack facility with 5150m² of manufacturing space and speciality equipment to support bag packaging production.

Oliver Healthcare Packaging CEO Michael Benevento commented: "This acquisition gives us greater control over our supply chain and continues our investments in the European region to better support our customer base. This vertical integration is a strategic way to build scale and flexibility while insourcing many of our packaging materials."

EK-Pack owner Marco Ziegler added: "EK-Pack has been family-owned for 40+ years and that's how Oliver began as well. We are excited to continue providing reliable supply to our food customers while also expanding our activities in healthcare."

Other investments from Oliver in recent years include the acquisitions of product and design firm Kansas City Design and medical packaging firm CleanCut Technologies.

GlobalData estimates that the healthcare packaging market will grow from $133.3bn in 2023 to $160.3bn by 2026.