New deal will make fruits and vegetables cheaper in the UK
The government has announced it will scrap border checks on fruit and vegetables imported from the European Union in an early move to ease trade ahead of its new SPS (sanitary and phytosanitary) deal with the European Union.
The agreement will establish a UK-EU sanitary and phytosanitary zone, slashing costs, which will ease pressure on food prices and eliminate routine SPS border checks for food exports and imports, the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs said in a statement on Monday (2 June).
This means that checks on medium-risk fruit and vegetables (including tomatoes, grapes, plums, cherries, peaches, peppers, and more) imported from the EU will not be required, and will therefore not be brought into force this summer.
In the short term, businesses can continue importing medium-risk fruit and vegetables from the EU without the products being subject to import checks or being charged associated fees, the department said.
The SPS agreement will make food trade with the UK’s biggest market cheaper and easier. Cutting excessive red tape and fees for traders exporting to and importing from the EU will strengthen supply chains and reduce prices for businesses and consumers, it added.
“This government’s EU deal will make food cheaper, slash bureaucracy and remove cumbersome border controls for businesses,” said Baroness Hayman (Biosecurity Minister). “A strengthened, forward-looking partnership with the European Union will deliver for working people as part of our Plan for Change,” she said.
The easement of import checks on medium-risk fruit and vegetables from the EU was introduced as a temporary measure to provide businesses time to prepare for their implementation and ensure a smooth flow of essential goods across the UK border.
The easement of checks has now been extended from 1 July 2025 to 31 January 2027 as a contingency measure, following the government’s announcement that it will agree a new SPS deal with the EU.
