UK and EU agree deal to remove Brexit checks on food and animal products

Sanitary and phytosanitary, or SPS, checks are border controls designed to protect people, animals and plants. “Sanitary” measures concern food safety and animal health. “Phytosanitary” measures concern plant health. They are used because trade can spread diseases, pests or harmful substances between countries. The article describes them as certificates and controls covering animals, animal products, plants and plant products.

For example, a shipment of British cheese, sausages, flowers or leather goods may currently need paperwork and inspections before entering the EU. Under the proposed agreement, the vast majority of movements between Great Britain, the crown dependencies and the EU would take place without the certificates or controls currently required.

The checks are not disappearing immediately. The deal was largely agreed in May, but implementation is expected in the first quarter of 2028. The delay reflects the UK’s need to dynamically align its food standards legislation with the EU’s, including rules affecting products such as crops treated with fungicides.

The proposed SPS deal covers a wide range of food and agricultural trade. It includes animals, animal products, plants and plant products moving between Great Britain, the crown dependencies and the EU. The article gives familiar examples, including sausages, cheese, flowers and leather goods. These products currently face Brexit-related paperwork, certificates and controls.

The key change is that the vast majority of movements would no longer need the certificates or controls currently required. This would affect both exports from Britain to the EU and imports into Britain. It could also help smaller retailers source goods in more practical quantities, rather than absorbing the cost of border procedures on every shipment.

The agreement has been settled, according to sources, but it is not yet operational. It was largely agreed in May and is expected to be implemented in the first quarter of 2028. The draft statement also says UK goods would be exempt from the EU’s carbon border adjustment mechanism because both sides are aligned on emissions.

British food exports to the EU have fallen sharply since Brexit. The National Farmers’ Union said last month that exports had collapsed by a third. That figure shows the scale of the disruption facing producers that previously sold into nearby European markets with fewer border procedures.

The hardest-hit products were eggs, chicken and potato products. These goods can be especially vulnerable to delays, extra paperwork and higher administrative costs because they often move through tightly managed supply chains. The article also says Brexit checks made it impossible for smaller UK retailers to buy some smaller batches of cheese and wine economically.

The proposed SPS deal is intended to reverse part of that damage. It would remove most current certificates and controls for covered movements, helping exporters and importers. However, the change is not expected until the first quarter of 2028. Until then, businesses must continue operating under the existing post-Brexit arrangements.

If implemented, the deal would make exporting food from Britain to the EU much easier. The article says it would be a boon for British food exporters by removing most certificates and controls now required for covered goods. That could reduce delays, administrative work and the cost of serving European customers.

The change would also reach small businesses inside the UK. Delicatessens and similar retailers could return to buying smaller batches of cheese and wines from Europe. Brexit checks introduced in 2022 made those purchases uneconomic because the border costs were too high for small consignments. Removing most controls would make smaller orders more viable again.

The benefit is still several years away. Although the SPS text was largely agreed in May, implementation is now expected in the first quarter of 2028. A further six-month transition may apply to some products, including grains grown this year with fungicides not yet approved in the EU.

The deal will not take effect until the first quarter of 2028 because the UK must change its food standards legislation before the new system can work. The agreement requires Britain to “dynamically align” its rules with the EU’s. The article says the delay followed a six-month postponement of the second EU-UK summit after a change in UK prime minister.

Dynamic alignment means the UK would continue matching relevant EU food standards as they change, rather than following only the rules that existed when Brexit happened. The article points to fungicides as an example. Britain has diversified in some areas, including chemicals used to help crops grow in wet weather, but some are not yet approved in the EU.

Defra has warned industry leaders that implementation may occur in 2028, with another six-month transition for a handful of products. The approach is likely to revive arguments over whether Britain becomes a “rule taker” instead of a “rule maker”.

Northern Ireland matters because goods moving there from Great Britain are tied to the Windsor framework, part of the withdrawal agreement. The Democratic Unionist party supported Brexit but opposed the Windsor framework because it cemented SPS checks on goods sold into Northern Ireland from Great Britain. That made food and agricultural controls a major constitutional and political issue.

The proposed deal could reduce the checks affecting those movements. It also says retailers in Northern Ireland would no longer need to label products “not for the EU”. That label has been criticised by large supermarket chains, including Marks & Spencer. The change would therefore affect both supply procedures and shop shelves.

Unionist reactions remain divided. DUP leader Gavin Robinson said the deal did not go far enough. Steve Aiken of the Ulster Unionist party gave a cautious welcome, saying checks on most agricultural goods from the rest of the UK would be significantly, but not completely, reduced.

The EU single market is the bloc’s shared internal market, where participating countries trade under common rules. The article says Britain is expected to rejoin parts of it through wider mini-deals, including the single electricity market. That would let UK energy companies sell into continental grids again and is designed to help stabilise supplies.

Access depends on shared standards and systems. For electricity, participation would reconnect British energy companies with continental grids. For food, the SPS deal would align British rules with EU legislation so goods could move with fewer certificates and controls. These arrangements give Britain practical trading benefits while requiring it to follow relevant common rules.

The draft joint statement says the UK would make an “appropriate” financial contribution toward reducing economic and social disparities between EU regions. It links that payment to the degree of Britain’s participation in the EU’s internal market, making budget contributions part of the price of access.