Meat Management Column: Back to Brexit

This column was originally published in the September 2020 edition of Meat Management.

Since March, we have been focused on helping members navigate the extremely challenging circumstances brought about by the pandemic. Other work was paused, and companies tried to work out innovative ways to continue to trade with restaurants and food businesses shuttered. During the pandemic, the government stayed committed to leaving the Brexit transition period on 31 December 2020 and the deadline to extend the transition (on 1 July) came and went.

The summer saw us pivot back to Brexit. However, it is important to acknowledge that the pandemic is not over. Local lockdowns may continue to hamper the food industry – especially foodservice - on a regional level, and the economic impact of the pandemic will be felt for years to come. Brexit, then, is something for companies to contend with and plan for, at the same time as weathering the ongoing storm that is the pandemic.

For many companies, who have up to now only traded with the EU, Brexit will mean having to submit customs declarations, have product undergo SPS checks, and, potentially, pay tariffs for the first time. These processes are complex and not easily understood – not least when companies are focused on mitigating the impact of Coronavirus.

To help members navigate these issues and plan for the end of the year, we have started a series of one-hour Brexit Briefing calls. Focused around a specific topic and attended by relevant officials, the calls provide IMTA members with an opportunity to ask questions to officials and engage on various policy areas relating to the UK’s departure from the EU.

So far, we have held calls on tariffs, quotas, quota administration, labelling and health marks. We also have calls scheduled on the Northern Ireland Protocol, exporting to the EU, and transit, with more calls in the pipeline.

The calls have been successful so far and we have received much positive feedback from members on their content and utility. However, one thing which continues to strike us is the number of decisions still yet to be taken at a ministerial level. Many of these decisions will be critical for businesses, and they will need time to plan and adjust to the changes.

We are now less than five months away from the end of the transition and still awaiting clarity on many aspects of how goods will move between Great Britain and the European Union. That’s before even factoring in trade with Northern Ireland and the Northern Ireland Protocol, whose fate is to be decided by the UK-EU Joint Committee.

Therefore, whilst we are doing our best to help members plan for the changes coming at the end of the year; there is only so much we can do without decisions being taken in government. In the meantime, we will endeavour to get answers for IMTA members and continue to organise our Brexit Briefing calls.