Trade groups have reacted angrily to the British government’s announcement that shipments of EU plant and animal products will face tariffs of up to £145 if imported into Britain from the end of this month.
Businesses warned that the “common user rate” set by ministers for the main Channel port, Dover, would drive up food prices and discourage European producers from exporting to the UK from 30 April.
The British Chambers of Commerce said the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs “failed to listen” to the industry over the allegations.
Defra said on Wednesday the tariffs would apply to all shipments entering the UK through government-run border checks at Dover and the Eurotunnel, which handle the majority of the UK’s food imports. Trucks entering the country can carry multiple shipments.
William Bain, head of trade policy at the BCC, said tariffs of £29 per line of goods – limited to five tariffs per shipment, meaning a maximum tariff of £145 – would be a “hammer blow” to small importers.
“Importing a small consignment of goods with just five different types of meat, poultry, eggs, milk or some fish products in the ‘medium risk’ category will now face a bill of £145 per parcel under these proposals” , he added, urging the government. government to reconsider the situation.
Ministers have faced growing opposition from the plant and food sectors over the introduction of post-Brexit border controls on imports from the EU.
The checks have been delayed five times since the UK formally left the Union in January 2021, but the Government insists they are necessary to improve biosecurity and ensure a level playing field for British businesses which face similar checks and burdens when export to the EU.
Since January, EU exporters have had to provide additional documents on the provenance of plant and animal products, known as export health certificates (EHC). Physical inspections at the border will begin on April 30, while an additional level of security documentation will be required from October.
The common user charge will be £29 for products classified as high and medium risk and £10 for low risk products and goods in transit through the UK.
The tariffs will apply to imports entering Britain via government-run border posts at Dover and the Eurotunnel and inland processing center at Sevington. But they are expected to provide a benchmark for other privately run ports receiving imports from the EU.
Despite complaints from trade bodies, the British Ports Association, which represents the port industry, said the charges were lower than expected and would make it difficult for ports that have invested in border checkpoints to recoup their costs.
“The fee is at the lower level of our expectations, which, while better for traders, puts more pressure on those ports that have been forced to build new border infrastructure at significant cost,” said Mark Simmons, policy manager of BPA.
The Cold Chain Federation, which represents importers of perishable products, and the Horticultural Trades Association, which speaks on behalf of the plant industry, are among the other groups to express disappointment.
CCF chief executive Phil Pluck said the expenses EU exporters face, plus other new costs such as obtaining EHC for plant and animal products, would negatively affect food prices.
“[This will] discourage small European producers from exporting plants and animal products to the UK. The result for UK consumers: less choice, more food inflation,” said Pluck.
Jonas Aurell, chief executive of ScandiKitchen, a London-based delicatessen that is already struggling to import products including sausages, said he agreed with the BCC’s assessment.
“The British public will be significantly worse off when it comes to range and choice at delicatessen counters. . . It’s a strange way of thinking from a government of a nation of shopkeepers,” she said.
Andrew Opie, director of food at the British Retail Consortium, which speaks on behalf of some supermarkets, said it was “particularly disappointing” that the Government waited until late in the day before confirming costs at the UK’s busiest port for fresh food imports.
The UK horticultural industry, which is heavily reliant on imports from EU-based nurseries, has also warned that tariffs will increase costs.
James Barnes, president of HTA, warned that small and medium-sized businesses that typically import multiple commodity codes per shipment would be hardest hit. “In reality, businesses in our sector will pay the maximum rate of £145,” he said.
Defra said the announced tariffs are “at the low end” of the range on which the industry has been widely consulted and are necessary “to recover the costs of running our world-class border facilities”.
“We are committed to supporting businesses of all sizes and across all sectors as they adapt to new border controls,” the department added.