Warnings of higher food prices and empty shelves due to new

Trade groups have warned of higher food prices and empty supermarket shelves because of new post-Brexit border fees being introduced this month.

A maximum charge of £145 will apply on imports of plant and animal products, such as cheese and fish, entering the UK through the Port of Dover and Eurotunnel from 30 April.

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The fees are intended to cover the cost of operating new border control posts required after Brexit, and will not apply to goods brought into the UK for personal use, the government said.

But importers warned the new charges could lead to higher prices for consumers.

The Cold Chain Federation’s chief executive, Phil Pluck, said: “Ultimately, this will increase business costs and food prices and potentially lower choices for the shopper.”

James Barnes, chairman of the Horticultural Trades Association, said the policy “feels like it is constructed on the back of an envelope at best” and that the charges would “undoubtedly increase costs” and increase the likelihood of empty shelves in supermarkets.

Marco Forgione, director general of the Institute of Export & International Trade, said while larger businesses may be able to absorb the costs, for small firms, “an additional £145 per consignment might mean entire profit wiped out”.

EU businesses trading into UK may decline

He said as well as higher prices and a more limited variety of products available in UK shops and restaurants, “we now might begin to observe a decline of EU businesses trading into the UK, simply because they have been priced out”.

While the government had last year announced a timeline for the checks to begin on 30 April, the costs associated with those checks were only revealed on Wednesday.

The physical checks follow the introduction of new health certificates which have been required since January, as part of a new border model, which the government has estimated will add…