The UK government should consider a tit-for-tat response if Brussels continues to refuse access to British seed potatoes, according to farm leaders. Scottish, English and Welsh seed potato growers and traders are still unable to export to the EU as part of the Brexit fallout, causing millions of pounds in losses, reports Philip Case for Farmers Weekly.
The EU denied third country status for GB seed potatoes over concerns they would not remain “dynamically aligned” with the bloc’s standards on this product. In addition to EU exports, the movement of seed potatoes from Great Britain to Northern Ireland is also banned. However, seed imports from the EU to the UK – about 28,000t each year – will continue until 30 June 2021.
At the NFU Scotland (NFUS) virtual conference on Thursday 11 February, the presidents of the UK’s four main farming unions were asked if they felt the UK should ban the importation of EU seed potatoes – unless the EU lifted its own ban. NFU president Minette Batters said the current ban had “huge ramifications” for the Scottish seed potato industry.
Source: Farmers Weekly. Full article here
