Welsh meat exporters will benefit from less red tape after the UK and the EU agree a new food and drink (SPS) deal, the UK Government said.
Last year, Wales exported £200 million worth of meat and meat products to EU member states. In 2024, only two regions of the UK – Northern Ireland and West Midlands – exported more meat and meat products to the EU than Wales in value terms.
A new UK/EU SPS deal would also mean that they can sell raw burgers and sausages in the EU for the first time since Brexit.
The EU is the UK’s largest trading partner, but since Brexit, many businesses have scaled back their trade with the EU due to the increased costs and red tape. This has likely contributed to UK food, feed and drink exports to the EU dropping by 21% since 2018 in real terms, and imports from the EU dropping by 7%, said the UK Government.
EU Relations Minister Nick Thomas-Symonds said:
“Wales' farmers produce some of the best meat in the world but red tape makes it hard for them to export it to the EU.
“We have already reset our relationship with the European Union and now it is my ambition to finalise a food and drink SPS deal with the EU by 2027 to make it easier for farmers to sell their fantastic produce with our biggest trading partner.”
Secretary of State for Wales Jo Stevens said:
“Farmers and food producers in Wales will be delighted by this plan to make it easier to export meat to the EU. And shoppers are set to benefit too as reductions in red tape help reduce the cost of their weekly shop.
“Wales is rightly famous for the quality of our produce, especially Welsh lamb, and it’s brilliant news that access to the valuable European marketplace is being improved.”
British goods such as dairy, fish, eggs and red meat entering the EU are currently subject to 100% documentary checks and up to 30% physical checks. An SPS deal will see these removed entirely.
Routine SPS border checks will be eliminated, so fresh produce can hit supermarket shelves more quickly and traders can get produce to European customers with less paperwork and fewer costs.
New research published in August has also revealed the significant costs that food businesses in Great Britain face when exporting under the Trade and Cooperation Agreement, including the requirement for Export Health Certificates which typically cost between £80 and £200 per certificate for fish and seafood goods and between £113 and £200 per certificate for other-agri foods.
Similarly, Organic Certificates of Inspection cost on average £35 per certificate in fees while sampling can also add up to £1,200 to the cost of a shipment of beef or cheese, including sampling fees, waiting time, and the value of the product lost.
In total, an SPS agreement could add up to £5.1 billion a year to the UK economy in the long run, said the UK Government.
