More

    Frozen food supplies may get disrupted post-Jan 1

    iStock image

    New border controls on animal and plant products from the EU could “see more disruption” to food supplies in the new year, UK’s frozen food industry warned on Tuesday (21).

    According to Richard Harrow, the chief executive of the British Frozen Food Federation (BFFF), new border controls on animal and plant products from the EU could see major delays at ports in the New Year.

    From Jan 1, importers must make a full customs declaration on goods entering the UK from the EU or other countries. Traders will no longer be able to delay completing full import customs declarations for up to 175 days, a measure that was introduced to cope with the disruption of Brexit.

    “Whilst the new UK rules will be introduced in stages, we are concerned that not enough planning has been done to ensure the new requirements are understood by everyone in the food supply chain,” Harrow said.

    “A good example of this is a new HMRC process called the Goods Vehicle Management System (GVMS). The system is designed to enable HMRC to keep a track of loads containing meat and plant products in fast-moving roll-on-roll off ports such as Dover.

    “The system requires haulage companies to pre-lodge the arrival of a load to the UK before it departs from the EU port of embarkation. Whilst many UK hauliers are well prepared for this change, we suspect many EU hauliers are not.”

    “Whilst the UK authorities have said they will not stop vehicles that do not complete all the documents correctly, this assumes the EU port will allow a vehicle without the correct paperwork to leave port.”

    The UK imports five times the amount of food than it exports to the EU, so, the potential for massive delays and food supply issues in January is high.

    “We are still finding new elements of the process that our members are unaware of, or lack of clarity on what they need to do to comply with the regulations. With only days to go before the new rules, we remain concerned that January could be a fraught month for our members,” Harrow added.

    Latest

    BFree supports Coeliac UK with donations from limited-edition packs

    Gluten free flatbreads brand BFree is supporting the Coeliac...

    Ribena’s bouncing berries set to return to screens

    Ribena’s iconic berries are bouncing back onto screens this...

    Burts limited-edition packs celebrate 200th anniversary of RNLI

    As part of the Royal National Lifeboat Institution’s (RNLI)...

    Morrisons acquires 38 convenience stores in Channel Islands

    Morrisons on Tuesday (7) acquired 38 stores in the...

    Don't miss

    BFree supports Coeliac UK with donations from limited-edition packs

    Gluten free flatbreads brand BFree is supporting the Coeliac...

    Ribena’s bouncing berries set to return to screens

    Ribena’s iconic berries are bouncing back onto screens this...

    Burts limited-edition packs celebrate 200th anniversary of RNLI

    As part of the Royal National Lifeboat Institution’s (RNLI)...

    Morrisons acquires 38 convenience stores in Channel Islands

    Morrisons on Tuesday (7) acquired 38 stores in the...

    BrewDog CEO steps down

    James Watt, the co-founder and Chief Executive of BrewDog,...

    Morrisons acquires 38 convenience stores in Channel Islands

    Morrisons on Tuesday (7) acquired 38 stores in the Channel Islands from long term partner SandpiperCI. All of the stores are currently supplied by Morrisons...

    BrewDog CEO steps down

    James Watt, the co-founder and Chief Executive of BrewDog, is stepping down after 17 years at the helm of the Scottish brewer. The company revealed...

    Independent grocery retailers failing to display clear and accurate prices: CMA

    The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has called on grocery stores to make accurate pricing a priority, as its review indicated that some independent...