Article 50 has been triggered. Brexit has officially started. So what now for the food & drink industry?
For the latest industry positions on Brexit, don’t miss our round-up of food & drink reactions to the triggering of Article 50 today as well as this call from the BRC, FDF and NFU for an ‘ambitious’ free trade deal for the UK. Our primer on the 12 key priorities for food & drink post-Brexit from July also remains required reading.
No matter what side of the Brexit debate you were on, it’s clear the challenges that now lie ahead are enormous. A new report from Rabobank, out today, warns food prices are going to rise no matter what trade deal the UK government manages to strike. No wonder Waitrose is putting up the price of bananas for the second time in six months.
Then there’s the uncertainty over freedom of movement and access to labour. We have long chronicled the impact Brexit could have on food & drink employers, but there’s concern these challenges are not yet always appreciated by government. Getting industry and ministers on the same page over labour will have to be a key priority in the months ahead.
But it’s not just doom and gloom. There are also going to be opportunities. Brexit could prompt a move towards greater food self-sufficiency for the UK, as we explored in this feature recently, appetite for M&A deals remains high despite Brexit uncertainty, and, as the IFE trade show earlier this month made clear, UK food & drink remains very much open for business. Plus, while there has been some disquiet over Brexit among exporters, many food & drink companies will be keen to explore new overseas opportunities in the wake of Brexit.
It’s all to play for, then. As our features editor James Halliwell writes today: “There is little else for the food and drink industry to do but to try to make Brexit work in a positive and determined fashion.”
Onwards and upwards.
For more exclusive insight and analysis on Brexit from The Grocer, I recommend the articles listed below.
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