Families could face paying more for fresh fruit and vegetables if Labour’s new trade deal with the European Union comes into force, a food association has warned.
Even filling festive stockings could become more costly, with inspectors conducting extra border checks on satsumas, it was claimed. The proposed trade deal is a key part of the party’s Brexit reset and is predicted to be formally agreed at a EU-UK summit on November 20.
It is not expected to come into force until early 2028. The sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) agreement would see Britain align with EU food safety and animal and plant health rules in return for removing most related border checks on trade with the bloc.
The move has been welcomed by several sectors, with the Food and Drink Federation describing it as a “positive step” towards easing trade with Europe. The British Meat Processors Association said Brexit had led to a “mountain of costly paperwork, certificates and checks”.
“A well-designed SPS agreement offers a real opportunity to reverse that damage,” said chief executive John Powell. But the Fresh Produce Consortium, which represents businesses that grow, import and sell fresh fruit and vegetables, said its sector was facing a £300million annual bill if the changes go ahead.
Some of these costs would likely be passed to consumers, it warned. While SPS may smooth trade between Britain and Europe, it said, it would add an expensive layer of bureaucracy to imports from outside the EU.
Chief executive, Nigel Jenney, said there were “serious concerns” about the plans which he said would “introduce substantial new border costs to manage processes that do not exist today”. “In our view, they are entirely unnecessary,” he said. “You have to wonder, could a new trade policy actually shrink the fresh fruit and veg aisle at your local supermarket?”
The FPC asked. “It sounds extreme, but ahead of the November 20 UK-EU trade summit in Brussels, the industry is sounding a massive alarm.”
The UK imports four million tonnes of fresh produce from outside of the EU each year, equivalent to 50 billion adult portions. Britain uses a “risk-based” approach to inspection.
It generally exempts fresh produce from routine inspections unless it is specifically listed for checks. Under the EU system, the FPC says, the starting point is usually to inspect every consignment unless a reduced rate of inspection applies.
The FPC estimates, under these new rules, British inspections of fresh product imports could rise from 5,000 a year to more than 100,000. According to FPC data, “implementing dynamic alignment without any exemptions is going to impose over £300million in entirely avoidable annual costs onto the fresh produce sector”.
Mr Jenney explained: “Since Brexit, the UK has removed significant border costs and delays by carrying out no or very few official inspections. The UK Government made this decision based on its own assessment of biosecurity risk. However, if we adopt the EU’s inspection approach, checks will increase substantially for goods bought from countries outside the EU. The UK imports 65 per cent of its fresh produce, with 54 per cent coming from non-EU countries. At present, most imports face no inspections or only a low level of checks. Under the EU approach, inspections can sometimes apply up to 100 per cent of all consignments. This would be a major change, adding significant costs for the industry and UK consumers.”
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Citrus fruits could be particularly affected because the EU utilises checks to protect its citrus-growing regions from diseases. It is considered a lower risk to Britian, where the fruits are not widely grown.
“Some of the biggest ones would be citrus, oranges and lemons and things like satsumas,” said Mr Jenney, warning prices could rise. Further, because the products are fresh, border delays can diminish their shelf life, he said.
He said his trade body’s members had already invested millions post-Brexit to comply with the changing regulations following the 2016 vote. He also questioned what the new arrangements might mean for the trade deals Britain has struck since leaving the EU.
He revealed he had been invited to several embassies to discuss the trade implications. Asked if he believed the costs would filter through to consumers, he replied: “Yes. I say that with a very heavy heart but there’s just no choice. The industry is just not able to absorb the costs by itself. With all the challenges in the world at the moment why would we want to cut off a positive trading relationship that helps feed our nation? When the world is in a difficult position we should be protecting ourselves as a country.”
Mr Jenney said, while a closer relationship with Europe was desirable, it should not come at the cost of trade with the rest of the world. The FPC has put forward an alternative proposal that would designate imports that will remain in the UK as “for domestic consumption”.
It argues these should be exempt from the checks because they would not be exported to the EU. “There is a huge opportunity for a fantastic win-win deal that truly benefits UK fresh produce consumers, but the Government must act now,” he said.
Elsewhere, meat processors suggested that the impact on their own non-EU imports would be limited. The British Meat Processors Association pointed out that countries that supplied the UK also supplied the EU, meaning the supply chains and standards were the same.
Where EU laws have been tightened, it said “suppliers already meet the stricter version”. “The practical change is that they will complete an EU-style health certificate for the UK instead of a UK-style one,” it explained.
“They already do this for most of their exports, because the EU is a bigger market for most of them than the UK.”
Jim Winship, director of the British Sandwich and Food to Go Association, said there would be winners and losers from the new rules. He said: “The outcome is mixed. We import from Europe anyway and so that’s going to be easier, but we also import from outside Europe, so I think it’s swings and roundabouts. “I don’t think there will be a major impact in our industry.”
He said the bigger concerns were issues such as energy prices and the cost of bread. The Treasury has previously said that the deal, by removing the EU checks, would allow businesses to cut costs and “help keep the price of a weekly shop down”.
A Government spokesman said the deal will “deliver up to £5.1billion a year for the UK economy, slashing the costly red tape that only helps drive up supermarket prices and stifle trade”.
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