The fresh produce sector has accused the UK government of shifting the costly burden of SPS border checks onto imports from countries outside of the EU.
As plans move ahead to align with EU rules on sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) checks for plants, animals, food and feed, the Fresh Produce Consortium (FPC) estimates importers of such goods could instead face extra costs of around £300m ($402.5m) on products coming into the UK from the rest of the world.
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Much of that payload could fall on the trade association’s members, the FPC said, with its CEO Nigel Jenney criticising the government for not “properly assessing the wider consequences for UK food security, supply chain resilience and consumer affordability”.
Jenney’s comments contrast with those of Biosecurity Minister Baroness Hayman, who said the “agri-food” agreement with the EU is “great news for British food and drink businesses of all sizes, right across the UK”.
The Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (Defra) issued guidance for businesses on the planned SPS arrangements this week ahead of an agreement with the EU that is expected to come into force in mid-2027.
Despite the preparatory notice, Defra said the “negotiations are ongoing [and] not all details are confirmed at this stage”.
According to Defra, the SPS agreement will “reduce the requirements for routine SPS documentation and controls”, meaning the need for health certificates, phytosanitary certificates and “routine border checks for most agri-food goods will be removed”.
However, through the UK’s alignment with EU rules on goods from countries outside of the bloc, checks on products from the rest of the world will remain.
Defra added: “The agreement is not a customs agreement, and so customs controls will remain” on all goods no matter their origin.
Meanwhile, citing the guidance on the new SPS arrangements, the FPC has warned the policy “reveals an increasingly politically driven and EU-focused approach to trade policy that risks imposing substantial new costs, complexity and border friction across the UK food supply chain”.
The FPC said about half of the UK’s fresh produce is sourced from countries outside of the EU. According to the trade body’s own analysis, as much as four million tonnes of goods coming into the UK, or 50% of imports, “could fall within the scope of expanded EU-style SPS controls”.
And it suggested additional checks on goods from outside the trading bloc are unnecessary, with the FPC noting “imports from the rest of the world already achieve more than 99.5% compliance across approximately 120,000 consignments annually under the UK’s current border regime”.
Some of the potential new burdens on such goods cited by the FPC would include “hugely increased inspections”, extra phytosanitary certification, “expanded pre-notification obligations”, additional “compliance systems”, and operational delays.
Its CEO Jenney added: “The government continues to present this agreement as a solution that will reduce barriers and simplify trade. However, the detail emerging from its own guidance tells a very different story.
“What we are seeing is a selective and politically driven ‘pick and mix’ approach to trade policy – highlighting the benefits of EU alignment while failing to acknowledge the very significant burdens now being imposed elsewhere across the supply chain.
“For the fresh produce sector, this does not remove friction or cost. It simply relocates it.”
The UK government argues otherwise, saying the “divergence from EU legislation” since Brexit has been “minor or minimal”.
Defra said the alignment with EU rules will affect importers and exporters of SPS goods, as well as “regulated” agri-food businesses, environmental health officers, port authorities and their health inspection bodies.
The agreement, it said, “will apply to all products that can be moved into the EU, which will include all food for processing, many retail products and, for example, plants for planting, seeds, and used agricultural and forestry machinery”.
Defra said the so-called post-Brexit Windsor Framework will still apply. That was introduced to facilitate border trade between the UK and Northern Ireland via green and red lanes.
However, Defra added the Framework, “in practice … should no longer be needed, other than potentially for a limited number of goods not covered by the agreement”.
Baroness Hayman lauded the overall agreement as a success story.
“By cutting unnecessary delays and paperwork at the border, the agreement will make it easier for businesses to sell our world-class produce to European customers, support jobs, and help ease pressure on food prices for families,” she argued.
“We are working hand-in-hand with food and farming businesses up and down the country to make the most of this opportunity and want every British producer – whether they currently trade with the EU or not – to be ready to seize the benefits this deal will unlock.”
