Acquisition

Compass Group PLC
6 March 2001



6 March 2001

Compass Group PLC

Acquisition of HSG Hoechst Service Gastronomie, germany and £27 million
Contract Win

Compass Group today announces that it has acquired an initial 75 per cent of
the shares in HSG Hochst Service Gastronomie GmbH ('HSG'), with an agreement
to acquire the remaining 25 per cent of the shares from InfraServ Hochst KG
within three years.  This will give Eurest, Compass Group's business and
industry foodservice specialist, exclusive responsibility for foodservice at
the Industriepark Hochst which has over 40 companies on site including not
only Hoechst but also Aventis, Messer, Solvay, Nutrinova and DyStar.

HSG is the Hoechst owned foodservice company which caters for over 20,000
staff and serves in excess of 1.1m meals a year at the site with an annual
turnover of approximately DEM 40m (£13.5m).  The acquisition further
strengthens Compass Group's position as the leader in foodservice management
in Germany.

Compass Group continues to grow organically in Germany and today also
announces that it has signed a 10 year contract with VFB Stuttgart, the latest
and most modern football stadium in Germany.  The contract will be worth DEM
80m (£27m) over the contract life.  Compass Group currently caters at the
football stadiums of 1.FC Koln and the ice hockey stadium of Mannheimer Adler
and now is well placed to benefit from the World Cup to be hosted in Germany
in 2006.

Michael J. Bailey, Chief Executive, Compass Group PLC, said: 'The German
foodservice market is unusual in that many major industrial companies continue
to operate on a self-catering basis, often via wholly owned foodservice
subsidiaries.  Good organic growth - including the VFB Stuttgart contract and
other new business gains at the Microsoft Munich Headquarters, and the
Mannesmann-Rexroth and Weber-Haus contracts announced in December 2000 -
together with this acquisition, continue to build our market-leading position
in Germany.  HSG Hoechst represents an excellent strategic move for Eurest and
will be an important reference contract to show the cost savings, variety of
food offers and quality of food to be gained by outsourcing to the Group.'

The acquisition is subject to approval by the German anti-trust commission.


Ends



Enquiries:  Cathi Lawrence, Corporate Communications Director, Compass Group    
            Tel: [phone]

            Nick Lyon / Wendy Baker, Hudson Sandler
            Tel: [phone]


Notes to Editors:

1.      InfraServ GmbH & Co. Hochst KG, domiciled in Frankfurt/Main, was spun
off the former Hoechst AG in 1998.  Today InfraServ acts as an integrated site
operator and service provider for chemical and life science production sites.
InfraServ operates the Hochst Industrial Park, which, for over 130 years, has
made a name for itself throughout the world as an innovative and efficient
production site for chemicals and pharmaceuticals.  Previously a large
research, production and administration center for the Hoechst Group, the
Industrial Park opened its gates to external companies in 1997.  The
Frankfurt-Hochst Industrial Park is now the base for over 40 companies
specialising in chemicals, life sciences and health care.  Some of them have
global operations, while others are small, innovative companies and service
providers.  Approximately 20,000 people are employed on site.

2.      Compass Group is the largest foodservice group in the world, with over
250,000 employees providing catering for clients including major employers,
educational establishments, hospitals, leisure venues, retail locations,
motorway service areas and at major airports and stations throughout USA,
Europe, Scandinavia and developing markets in Asia and South America.   It
operates through sector-specific subsidiaries such as Eurest, the world's
largest specialist in providing foodservice to business and industry clients.
The Group has increased turnover to over £7.3bn and now operates in over 80
countries world-wide.

Website:  www.compass-group.com