Brexit report: “No deal” threatens safety controls on food imports, warn academics

24 Jul 2018 --- A new report into food safety issues post-Brexit hints that checks on lorries transporting perishable goods could be suspended if there are significant delays at the border. In the latest Food Brexit Briefing, leading food policy specialists are urging the UK Government, food industry and consuming public to remain focused on food because a “careless Brexit” poses significant risks to food flows into and out of Britain. 

"Feeding Britain: Food Security After Brexit" takes stock of how HM Government is addressing food, food security and food regulation in the Brexit discussions.

According to the report, the Government recognizes the serious consequences that may ensue because it is making contingency plans to suspend food regulations in the event of a no-deal Brexit.

And the academics behind the report claim a government adviser told them that it might be necessary to wave on transport carrying perishable goods should delays emerge. There are concerns that border control food safety checks will lead to disruption and delays very quickly at UK entry ports because loads will have to be checked one by one. Even a check of a few minutes could quickly lead to congestion. 

“One could argue that this is sensible emergency planning,” says co-author Prof Tim Lang, “but it is also risky. Consumers would rightly wonder who was guaranteeing the safety and quality of the imported food they were buying.”

“Criminals would be alerted to opportunities for food fraud. And the move would send negative signals to the EU, at a delicate time in Brexit negotiations. It could make the UK’s third country status more problematic for exports.”

The authors welcome the fact that the Chequers Statement of July 6 and the subsequent White Paper recognize the importance of agri-food to Brexit. But the documents have major weaknesses, they say. 

The Government makes a fundamental mistake in proposing close alignment with the EU only for farming and manufacturing, but not for retail or food service. The report claims that this injects a fault-line into the UK food system between production and service sectors, yet foodservice is by far the largest source of employment in the entire UK food chain and delivers more gross value added (29 percent) than the other sectors (agriculture 7 percent, wholesaling 11 percent, manufacturing 26 percent and retailing 27 percent).

The Feeding Britain report also argues that an additional, unnecessary risk is being created by the Food Standards Agency’s decision to press ahead with major reform of UK food safety regulation, at a time when a stable regulatory regime should be in place as the basis of trade and Brexit negotiations. 

“It is vital, in the context of negotiating and enacting Brexit, that the Food Standards Agency, and the UK government more generally, avoid any decisions, proposals or actions, that could adversely affect food safety standards in the UK or the reputation of the UK’s food supply,” adds Professor Erik Millstone, Emeritus Professor of Science Policy at the University of Sussex’s Science Policy Research Unit.

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