Impact of Brexit on the European fruit and vegetable industry

The European fruit and vegetable industry is severely concerned about the impact, the ongoing Brexit negotiations could have on its intra-EU trade flows. Trade relations from EU mainland to the U.K. have been well established since many years and benefitted from smooth and seamless trade thanks to Single Market provisions. The trade between EU-27 and the U.K. significantly contributes to the economic stability and growth of the EU, as the EU is a significant net-exporter to the U.K with a trade flow of 3.1 million tonnes worth € 4 billion with a high dependence of the U.K. of fresh produce supply from EU mainland. According to a recent Rabobank assessment on the impact of the Brexit on Food and Agribusiness in Europe, fruit and vegetable, next to animal protein, will be most affected by the potential changes Brexit may have. As the industry is still absorbing the effects of the Russian embargo and the loss of a market of more than 2 million T, experiencing new constraints on trade flows would be detrimental and could lead to additional price pressure given market sensitivity of the fresh produce sector.

A new Freshfel paper contains a first collection of challenges, which need to be taken into account, when discussing the post-divorce trading conditions. This first inventory shall help to illustrate the multiple challenges the sector may face, once the divorce is concluded. It does not aim on completeness. Freshfel is eager to amend the paper in the upcoming months with potential solutions, to support the Task’s Force work, to negotiate the most favourable outcome for all stakeholders. With that regard, the paper is structured in the following way:

The European fruit and vegetable industry – A significant contributor to EU economic growth
The fruit and vegetable trade between EU-27 and U.K. – Current status and economic weight
Identified challenges and potential economic impact
General aspects and conclusion
Annexes with statistical data

Download the paper here.