Shortage of laboratory testing capacity is forcing imported foods coming into the UK through Brexit borders to be sent back to Europe, say food bodies.
The SPS Certification Working Group, which is made up of 30 trade and professional organisations representing £100bn of the UK’s food supply, has written to the government to warn that some samples of imported foods are being tested in other countries before they can be released at UK borders.
In a letter addressed to the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (Defra) secretary of state Steve Reed, the group said it was “deeply concerned by threats” to the UK’s food security caused by inadequate UK border check funding.
Among other problems, it cited restricted border control port open hours, with the lack of 24/7 service or helplines leading to delayed entry, food waste and financial losses.
Subscribe to Grocery Gazette for free
Sign up here to get the latest grocery and food news each morning
However, it noted that major concern was the lack of UK laboratory testing capacity, which has meant that the industry has been advised that samples should be sent to UEU countries, specifically Germany.
The letter added that insufficient lab facility places were causing a “significant cost increase on raw materials and ultimately final product”, a cost that was being passed onto shoppers as “its magnitude is too great to be absorbed by businesses”.
Other issues raised include hygiene concerns over the lack of cooked and raw food segregation, causing a risk of cross-contamination.
The group’s latest letter comes after it originally wrote to previous Defra secretary Steve Barclay earlier this year, to which it added it had received “neither a response nor acknowledgement of our letter.”
At the time, MPs called for clarity after the government announced a series of pushbacks on its implementation of post-Brexit border checks on food imports, thought to “add billions” to consumers bills.
