Copa & Cogeca disappointed at lack of progress in Brexit talks

Copa and Cogeca regret the lack of progress in the talks on the exit of the United Kingdom from the EU, warning that the uncertainty is bad for farmers across the EU.

Copa and Cogeca Secretary-General Pekka Pesonen said “We are quite unhappy that there is no real progress in these talks. Without progress, the economies of both the UK and other Member States in the EU will be threatened since trade is very integrated. The UK is a net importer of agri-food products, worth 57 billion euros, and it is well integrated into the Single Market. Some of our members – especially Ireland - have already felt the impact of the Brexit which caused the pound sterling to weaken significantly. Agricultural trade is also important for the UK with 60% of UK agri-food exports (beef, lamb, poultry, dairy, cereals) to the EU. We must avoid any disruption to trade”.

“Ways to preserve the investments made by the farming community on both sides of the channel need to be found,” he added.

“We also do not see a real commitment from the UK to respect its budgetary commitment, and also programmes that it subscribed to which go beyond 2020. It must honour these. With the UK being a net contributor to the EU budget, we want to make sure that additional resources are found so that farmers do not end up paying twice for Brexit”, he concluded.

For more information:
Copa Cogeca
www.copa-cogeca.eu