The UK risks a surge in illegal meat imports and devastating animal disease outbreaks unless border checks are upheld under the new UK-EU trade deal, the pig sector has warned.
Despite easing trade barriers with the EU, there are fears it could come at the expense of vital biosecurity protections that safeguard UK farms from deadly diseases like African swine fever (ASF).
Under the new sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) framework, some routine border checks on animal and plant products traded with the EU will be dropped, easing restrictions that have been in place since Brexit.
The deal will, for example, allow UK producers to export raw sausages and burgers to the EU for the first time since the UK’s departure from the bloc.
While welcoming the agreement’s potential to reduce red tape and costs for exporters, the National Pig Association (NPA) stressed that any relaxation of controls must not compromise the UK’s biosecurity.
NPA chief executive, Lizzie Wilson said: “The EU is our largest trading partner for pigmeat, so we support the government’s efforts to reset this relationship, with the ambition of reducing costs and other barriers to trade.”
However, Ms Wilson cautioned that the current Border Target Operating Model (BTOM) is already under strain and failing to properly inspect products of animal origin (POAO) entering the UK.
“In addition to this it does not appear to be functioning properly with very few physical inspections of POAO from the EU and rest-of-world taking place,” she said.
“This deal must not be seen as a reason by government to take their eye off the threat posed by the illegal import of POAO.”
Since October 2022, more than 220 tonnes of illegal meat have been seized at the Port of Dover alone, despite limited resources and checks.
There are concerns that the easing of formal trade checks could further weaken defences against diseases such as ASF and foot-and-mouth disease (FMD), which continue to circulate in parts of Europe.
Ms Wilson said: “Our greatest fear is that this agreement with the EU will just exacerbate an already dire situation and will now lead to less checks and a potentially weakened biosecurity position."
She called for more spot checks at Dover and Coquelles, citing the absence of a border post at the Short Straits and poor access to meat trade monitoring systems.
Without such controls, traceability and rapid response to threats could be compromised: “We don’t believe those on the border are going to be able to stop everything from coming in but there needs to be a strong first line of defence.”
The potential cost of an outbreak is substantial: according to the National Audit Office, the 2001 FMD outbreak cost the public sector more than £3bn and the private sector over £5bn – equivalent to around £14.7bn today.
An outbreak of ASF could result in an export ban worth £600 million, with government estimates placing the total cost between £10 million and £100 million.
