STORY
British food and farming businesses are being told to prepare for changes under the planned UK-EU sanitary and phytosanitary agreement, with ministers expecting the new arrangements to take effect from mid-2027. The agreement is intended to reduce routine paperwork and checks on agrifood products moving between Great Britain, Northern Ireland and the European Union.
The Government has updated guidance for businesses on how to prepare for the SPS agreement, which covers areas including animal and plant products, food and feed safety, organics, pesticides, marketing standards and food labelling. The deal is expected to ease the movement of meat, dairy, fish, eggs and other regulated products, though not all technical details have yet been finalised.
The issue is politically significant because it forms part of Keir Starmer’s wider attempt to reset relations with the EU while staying outside the single market and customs union. Supporters of closer alignment argue that reducing border friction will help exporters and food producers, while critics are likely to scrutinise the extent of any continuing regulatory alignment with Brussels.