Bulletin: EU imports to get easier

Improvements to UK-EU trade

The government has announced that it will scrap border checks on fruit and veg imported from the European Union to ease trade ahead of its new SPS (sanitary and phytosanitary) deal with the EU.

In a separate announcement, to safeguard the supply of retail goods into Northern Ireland, the government is introducing new legislation, The Marking of Retail Goods Regulations 2025, empowering the Defra Secretary of State to introduce ‘not for EU’ labelling in Great Britain by commodity, where it is determined there is a likelihood that the availability of certain goods in NI will be seriously adversely affected by those goods being delisted.

IGD opinion

The postponement of planned checks will reduce operational cost and complexity and will be welcomed by many businesses that import food to the UK.

However, there are several points to note:

• This decision affects only fruit and vegetables imported from the EU, not from other sources. The EU accounts for about 60% of imports in these categories, and 40% will remain subject to checks

• For the moment, checks have been delayed by 18 months to allow for time to agree a deal with the EU. It is not certain that a deal will be made within this window

• Checks exist to keep diseases out of the UK – the government says that it will rely on surveillance and intelligence to do this, but it is hard to see how this is better than a regime of physical checks

Is the income divide increasing?

The recent IGD Viewpoint report, How to respond to rising costs in 2025, revealed a significant income divide, with low-income groups planning to cut food costs the most. However, government data shows that, when inflation is considered, median income in the UK has been broadly flat since around 2009.

See our latest article for more details.

Winter fuel payments boost

The Chancellor has stated that more people would qualify for winter fuel payments this winter. The payment was only paid to those on pension credit last year. This meant that 10 million fewer pensioners received the payment last year.

IGD opinion

This will be welcome news to the millions of pensioners that lost out last year. However, it is still unclear how many people will benefit from this change of government policy. The Prime Minister has stated that clarity on this is required as soon as possible.

Lower growth forecast

The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) has forecast that worldwide growth is now expected to slow to a "modest" 2.9% in 2025, down from a previous forecast of 3.1%.

UK growth is forecast to slow to 1.3% from the 1.4% previously. UK growth would be "dampened by heightened trade tensions" as well as "elevated uncertainty".

But the group said Britain was facing its own challenges, in particular substantial government debt interest payments against a "very thin" financial buffer.

Free school meals

The government has announced that free school meal (FSM) provision will be expanded to include all children from households receiving Universal Credit. This will begin from September 2026.

Eligibility will be automatic, but households will still have to apply to receive FSM, using NI numbers.

IGD opinion

This is welcome news and builds on one of the recommendations of the previous National Food Strategy to expand the eligibility for the Free School Meal scheme.  Children who are hungry at school struggle to concentrate, perform poorly, and have a worse attendance record. The Food Strategy stated that only 1% of packed lunches meet the nutritional standards of a school meal.

Less well-off families will welcome this benefit. However, there is still a requirement to improve prosperity in a wider sense, improving incomes for the least well off.  

Single use vapes ban toolkit

With the introduction of a ban on the supply of single-use vapes, Defra is encouraging businesses to inform local high street retailers about the ban and the actions they should take to comply with the new rules. Defra has provided informational materials including a digital toolkit.

Bluetongue

Defra has announced that the Bluetongue Virus restricted zone will be extended from 1 July 2025 to cover the whole of England, ending movement restrictions for animals and allowing farmers to move cattle and sheep throughout England without movement tests.