British food and drink exports to EU collapse by more than a third since Brexit

British food and drink exports to the EU have plummeted by more than a third since the United Kingdom's exit from the European Union, according to new analysis by the National Farmers’ Union (NFU). The decline, which has been most severe in the first seven months of 2022, includes a 70% drop in sugar exports and a 74% reduction in egg products.

Poultry exports fell by 53% during the same period. The National Farmers’ Union president, Tom Bradshaw, emphasized the gravity of the situation, stating that the EU remains the UK's largest trading partner for agri-food products, accounting for 68% of these exports, yet the trade volumes have fallen over a third since 2019. The government's Brexit deal, signed in late 2020, aimed to maintain trading and security relationships with the EU, but economists estimate the economic cost to the UK has been as high as £240 billion.

Food exporters have long complained about the increased paperwork required by Brexit, including custom paperwork for every single food product with specific codes for variations in egg products and health certifications for health certification. Horticultural exports, particularly Scottish seed potatoes worth £11 million annually, have also been severely affected, with exports to the EU falling by more than 50%.

Andy Burnham, Labour's Shadow International Development Secretary, is reconsidering the party's red lines on EU membership in an effort to address the economic damage caused by Brexit. He hopes to secure a positive outcome in the upcoming UK-EU reset talks, targeting the removal of sanitary and phytosanitary checks on fresh farm produce.

Key details regarding the SPS checks are still pending finalization, and the NFU calls for transition arrangements to allow farmers to utilize new export freedoms next year.