The Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food discusses formulas for maintaining fluid trade with the new British Government’s Secretary of State for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, Steve Reed.

The Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, Luis Planas, has highlighted the ‘excellent collaboration’ between the Governments of Spain and the United Kingdom, which has enabled the country to remain one of the main markets for Spanish agri-food products after Brexit, and has stressed that this coordination will be strengthened with the new British Government.

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Luis Planas highlights the excellent collaboration with the United Kingdom, a priority market for Spanish foodstuffs

Planas met today in London with the Secretary of State for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, Steve Reed, who has just completed two months in office, and with whom he discussed various aspects of this collaboration.

Both were committed to maintaining fluid trade and seeking new avenues and collaboration agreements to strengthen it. Planas gave a very positive assessment of the evolution of trade relations after Brexit and the initial difficulties it entailed, as the United Kingdom was considered a third country. Spain is the main supplier of fresh produce to the UK, especially fruit and vegetables, and the UK is Spain’s main agri-food partner outside the European Union.

One of the issues at the centre of the meeting was border controls on agri-food products. Incidents in this area can generate tensions between operators, which is why they need to be resolved quickly. Luis Planas stressed the interest in reaching an agreement on compliance with phytosanitary standards.

The meeting discussed the forthcoming implementation in the United Kingdom of the ‘Border Target Operating Model’, a new customs model using technological platforms that will establish different categories of controls. The Spanish agri-food sector welcomes the implementation of a standardised system and Minister Planas stressed the importance for both operators and administrations to have as much clarity as possible about these changes and their implementation time.

Spain plays a strategic role in the UK’s food security as it is its main supplier of fresh produce. Practically a quarter of the vegetables imported by the UK come from Spain and in the case of products such as lettuce, this figure rises to 80%.

The United Kingdom is the fifth destination for Spanish agri-food exports and the first non-EU destination. In 2023, these exports totalled 4,820 million euros, with a positive balance for Spain of 3,848 million euros. The main exported products are vegetables (1,278 million euros), fresh fruit (875 million) and wine (312 million).

The meeting also addressed issues such as rural development, generational change, innovation and digitalisation of farms and the veterinary collaboration agreement currently under negotiation between the European Union and the United Kingdom. On fisheries, Planas and Reed exchanged points of view on the situation of the fishing grounds in British waters where the Spanish fleet fishes and the implications of the declarations of marine protected areas.

Before this meeting, the minister held a meeting with a group of restaurateurs and importers from the United Kingdom.