New border controls risk fresh food inflation

The UK government has published plans on managing the country's borders post Brexit.

A major milestone will be in 31 October 2023, with the introduction of health certification on imports of medium risk animal products, plants, plant products and high risk food (and feed) of non-animal origin from the EU.

The Cold Chain Federation argues that the proposals solve none of the real risks facing the post-Brexit food supply chains and will exacerbate shortages and inflation. The proposals will make it more expensive, slower, and more complicated to export products such as meat and dairy from the EU into the UK.

The new controls require businesses importing fresh or frozen meat, dairy, and other goods to provide an export health certificate, which must be signed in person by a vet at the point of departure. Every consignment of goods in the medium and high-risk categories entering the UK will face a new 'border tax,' and all goods in medium and high-risk categories will be subject to documentary checks.

As the documentary controls are set to come into force from October 2023, this means that tens of thousands of food businesses across the EU need to be informed, and they need to put new compliance procedures in place and be ready to go within six months.

Cold Chain Federation chief executive Shane Brennan said: “Six years since the UK started the process of leaving the EU and after two previous postponements to bringing in the necessary food controls, the proposals today are a massive disappointment. They solve none of the real risks facing our post-Brexit food supply chains and will exacerbate shortages on the shelf and food inflation.

“When plans to bring in controls starting from July 2022 were cancelled, we were promised a fundamentally new approach to how the UK would manage its border, that is not what this proposal is. None of the fundamental problems have been solved and business have nowhere near enough time to prepare.

“Groupage, which is the only cost-effective way to move smaller volumes of food goods into food retail, restaurants and more, will no longer be workable under the new regulations so we can expect a collapse in the volume of speciality products coming into the UK. Overall, exporting products such as meat and dairy from the EU into the UK will be more expensive, slower and more complicated.

“We have to expect that many EU based food exporters will take one look at these proposals and decide to cease supplying UK customers. As the recent tomato shortages have shown, food suppliers have plenty of options to sell elsewhere. Bringing in this scheme, in this form, at this pace, at a time of spiralling food price inflation and ongoing supply shortages is a really bad idea.”