Delays to the UK government’s strategy for ensuring robust border checks on meat products entering the UK has been criticised for failing to ensure the health and safety of produce and putting the industry at risk.
Jamie Wyllie, East Lothian pig producer and chair of NFU Scotland’s Pigs Committee, said that following Brexit, secure systems for border control staff and infrastructure to check and monitor meat and other products entering the country have failed to surface. Commitments for a system to be in place have been given, but deadlines for start dates have been repeatedly pushed back with the new re-written legislation giving a date of January 2024 – a significant delay from the initial January 2021 date given.
UK farmers and producers are being exposed to increased risk due to the ongoing issues and the longer this continues, the ‘greater the distortion of the market’ for UK producers, said Mr Wyllie. One of the biggest risks to the UK is the potential for leaving the industry unprotected against livestock diseases, such as African Swine Flu (ASF). ASF is not currently active in the UK, but the disease can stay active in frozen, cooked or raw meat for over a year. The only way it can enter UK markets is through imported meat that has been infected which highlights how vital it is that border controls are brought in.
COPYRIGHT Ian R Fleming
Effective system required
Mr Wyllie continued to emphasise that although a system of checking imported meats is desperately needed, it is vital that the system that comes into play is effective and efficient. Reassurances are required that due diligence will be given to creating a system that is not just being launched to meet a deadline, but will actually be effective in deterring illegal meat importing and ensuring safety for the industry.
Mr Wyllie said that the need is two-fold: the first part being a normal customs check on any product coming into the country to authenticate its product type; the second being specific to meat – ensuring health certificates are in place to ensure the meat can be tracked to its origin and has not come from high-risk countries or regions. This secondary layer of protection would include certification from a vet from the country of origin to confirm health and safety protocols have been followed. The Pigs Committee suggest that this action would add around 6% to the cost of import or export.
“The reality is that we are not part of the EU anymore and therefore have no control over disease mitigation measures that the EU does,” said Mr Wyllie. “The EU does have a very sophisticated system for disease monitoring, checking and sharing which helps EU countries to mitigate risk, but we no longer have access to this system. The EU makes us do these verification and health checks so they obviously think it’s important for their member countries’ health.”
It is clear that it is essential for the correct border checks to begin in January 2024 and not be allowed to defer any later. The industry must be protected by the government, and Westminster must show that farmers’ needs are a high priority.
To read Jamie Wyllie’s NFU Scotland blog, please visit: www.nfus.org.uk
