The British Meat Processors Association (BMPA) has expressed their relief that after months of uncertainty, it is welcome news that border checks will be eased from 1 July, 2022.
But this, they say, is “a real double-edged sword for British businesses”, as on the one hand it makes importing the one quarter of food that stocks UK supermarket shelves cheaper and easier to get into the country, but this does come with risks.
There are concerns that, in the absence of any sanitary and phytosanitary checks, African swine fever could be allowed into the country, which could devastate our domestic pig production.
The BMPA states that there is also the risk of serious food fraud the longer it’s known that goods will simply be waved through at British ports.
“Exporters will also be acutely aware that they still incur substantial additional costs to export to the EU and are subject to full border checks and maximal friction. They know that their continental competitors will not have that burden when selling into this country or when supplying to the EU market.”
To read more about the work of the BMPA, see here.