Post-Brexit regulations on imports of food, flora, and fauna from the EU to the UK have been activated. Health certificates are now necessary for a range of EU goods, from cut flowers to fresh produce such as meat, fruits, and vegetables. While some industry bodies fear potential delays and increased costs, others believe this will boost competitiveness for UK farmers.
The government claims its border model will "minimize burdens for traders." Four years after leaving the EU, the UK government is implementing new trade rules, as mandated by the Brexit agreement, for goods coming from the EU. This marks the beginning of the reversal of the free flow of such goods, a system in place since the inception of the EU single market in 1993.
From Wednesday, "export health certificates" will be required for "medium risk" animal products, as well as plants and plant products imported from the EU to Britain. This implies a veterinary health check must be performed in the EU on every consignment of meat, fruit, and vegetable produce destined for Britain. Although not all produce will require checks, most consignments will due to the mixture of goods, as per industry experts.
For the first time, controls are also being applied to goods from Ireland. However, the government's Windsor Framework allows goods to move freely to and from Northern Ireland.
Home Secretary claims "no interruption" to food on supermarket shelves
Home Secretary James Cleverly said that there would be "no interruption" to food on supermarket shelves as a result of the new rules. "The UK has always been a consumer of international products, and unsurprisingly, French products are very, very popular in the UK. We're not going to lose that appetite. We're going to make sure that these sensible, responsible checks are done in a way that makes no interruption to the supply of food on the shelves, so people don't need to worry about that. We, of course, want to make sure that we maintain good quality food available on the shelves, and we've always been able to do that. And we will continue doing that now."
Source: bbc.com