UK Government publishes updated business guidance ahead of UK-EU Sanitary and Phytosanitary (SPS) deal
The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) has published updated guidance for British businesses to help them understand upcoming regulatory changes and prepare for a new UK-EU SPS deal. As part of the release, the government reaffirmed its intention for the new food and drink deal to take effect from mid-2027, covering the trade and movement of plants, plant products, animals, animal products, feed and food.
Negotiations are still ongoing. However, this is a strong indication of the UK Government’s progress on this strand of negotiations, as well as its intention to be transparent with the sector about necessary changes.
A new SPS deal will save businesses money by removing the need for costly and time-consuming paperwork such as Export Health Certificates. It will improve supply chain resilience and support the haulage industry by tackling delays at the border. And it will reopen markets for certain agrifood products that have not had access since Brexit - for example, live bivalve molluscs into the EU for depuration.
This agreement forms part of a wider range of deals, including a Youth Experience Scheme and Emissions Trading Scheme linkage, currently being negotiated between London and Brussels.
The announcement comes less than three weeks after the UK Trade and Business Commission (UKTBC) published its latest report on the UK-EU SPS Deal. The report offered recommendations for how an SPS deal could benefit both sides, including:
The UKTBC recommended that the UK Government should end its regulatory divergence from EU pesticide standards, while also ensuring appropriate transition periods to align to EU pesticide rules. Defra guidance confirms that GB will align to the EU list of active substances and pesticide maximum residue limits. It also confirms that Defra is considering the possibility of targeted arrangements in areas where it would be challenging to implement the necessary changes under the agreement.
The UKTBC recommended that the UK and EU work towards a harmonised framework on precision breeding but that, in the meantime, the government pause plans for (English) regulatory divergence on precision breeding. Defra guidance confirms that precision breeding is still subject to ongoing negotiations, with the EU having accepted there will need to be a number of areas where the UK retains its own rules.
Finally, the UKTBC recommended reasonable transition periods to full alignment, balancing the need to realise the economic benefits quickly with a period of adjustment for businesses. Defra say they will publish further details on exceptions and transition periods in summer 2026.
Polling by Best for Britain, cited in our report, shows that an SPS agreement enjoys a high level of support among the general public. More than three in five (62%) are in favour, compared to just under one in four (23%) against. This latest announcement should begin to undo the damage Brexit has caused to the food and drink industry, which, according to the National Farmers' Union, has seen British farm exports to the EU fall by over 37%.