Kubota Corporation has agreed to acquire the lawnmower business division of Italian manufacturer Officine Bieffebi and its subsidiary Gianni Ferrari. The new owner intends to merge the two businesses into a new company called Kubota Gianni Ferrari.

A wholly-owned subsidiary of Kubota Holdings (Kubota’s European subsidiary for its agricultural industrial machinery business), Kubota says that the creation of this new subsidiary will speed up the expansion of its professional groundcare product line up in Europe.

Officine Bieffebi and Gianni Ferrari develop and manufacture a wide range of lawn equipment in Europe, but are best known for their centre collect front mowers. These are popular in Italy, France, Germany and the UK, and the acquisition will give Kubota access to a new dealer network.