Over 14 tonnes of illegal meat seized at Dover in just one week

More than 14 tonnes of illegal meat have been seized at Dover in a single week, exposing growing cracks in the UK’s biosecurity defences.

The Dover Port Health Authority (DPHA) said it removed 14.2 tonnes of illicit meat at the end of March alone as part of routine spot checks at the busy crossing.

The figure continues a sharp upward trend. Since September 2022, seizures have surpassed 422 tonnes. Volumes have risen markedly in recent months.

January alone saw a record 34 tonnes confiscated. That compares with just under 8.5 tonnes in January 2024 and 24.5 tonnes in January 2025 — highlighting the rapid escalation.

DPHA warned that physical inspections remain critical to tackling the problem. “AI, automated paperwork checks, and remote retrospective traceability can’t spot or remove concealed illegal meat; but spot checks and officers on the ground at this border do,” it said.

The authority added that “the evidence is unequivocal: to be effective, border checks must be carried out at the border”, describing frontline inspections as the point at which intervention is most effective.

Officials cautioned that once goods pass inland unchecked, risks increase significantly. “Once goods move unfettered inland, the threat to animal health… is already inside the country, and our ability to intervene is needlessly compromised,” it said.

The authority also criticised the government’s Border Target Operating Model (BTOM), particularly its use at the Short Straits. DPHA said the system allows goods to travel “22 miles inland before inspection” — weakening frontline defences and increasing risk.

It argued the approach “has enabled non-compliance, created avoidable biosecurity gaps, increased business costs, and exposed the UK to preventable animal-disease and public-health risks”.

Concerns were also raised that some vehicles are bypassing checks altogether. “With evidence now confirming that many vehicles never attend for inspection… urgent and substantive change is essential,” the authority said, especially as the UK moves towards a new sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) agreement with the EU.

DPHA backed Defra’s efforts to strengthen controls, calling for checks to remain firmly at the border — both in Dover and at Coquelles in France. “It is clear; our border is only as strong as the checks we do at it,” it added.

However, uncertainty remains over future funding. Defra provided £3.1 million for 2025–26, enabling around 20% coverage of illegal import checks, but a settlement for 2026–27 has yet to be confirmed.

Without clarity on funding, the scale of future inspections — and the UK’s ability to intercept illegal imports before they enter the country — remains in question.