Farm leaders fear loss of leverage as SPS talks stall

Uncertainty has been cast over the UK’s proposed sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) agreement with the EU after next month’s UK-EU summit was postponed following prime minister Sir Keir Starmer’s resignation.

The summit, which had been set for 22 July in Brussels, was due to finalise a UK-EU reset package, including an SPS agrifood deal to cut red tape, remove most export health certificates and ease border checks by mid-2027.

Farm leaders say the delay could weaken the UK’s position at a critical stage and jeopardise transition arrangements for crop protection products, livestock medicines and agricultural technologies.

See also: The pros and cons for farming of closer EU alignment

Speaking at the quarterly NFU Council meeting in Stoneleigh, Warwickshire, on 23 June, NFU president Tom Bradshaw said the timing could hardly be worse.

“This political chaos matters, because we were so close to this SPS negotiation,” he said.

Tom Bradshaw addressing the NFU Council © MAG/Philip Case

He warned the UK’s leverage may have diminished.

“Where previously the EU had 90% of the advantage, I think they’ve now got 100%. That really concerns me,” he said.

The NFU has been pressing ministers to secure transition arrangements covering plant protection products, antimicrobials and gene-editing technologies ahead of any move towards alignment with EU rules.

Mr Bradshaw said securing the right arrangements is “absolutely essential to drive forward production”.

Using flufenacet, a herbicide used to control blackgrass in cereals, as an example, he added that losing it would create “very stark challenges” for arable farmers.

Regulatory risk

NFU Horticulture and Potatoes Board chairman Martin Emmett said alignment on crop protection remains a major concern.

He highlighted five active ingredients used by UK potato growers that are not EU-approved and may not be available for use in the coming season.

“What we need is a transition arrangement that gives enough time for it to catch up. A hard stop next June would be extremely challenging,” he said.

NFU Poultry Board chairman Will Raw warned that alignment with EU regulations could remove derogations relied upon by some organic producers, threatening system viability.

With no new date announced for the summit, uncertainty over the future regulatory framework for British agriculture is set to continue.

The summit will be rescheduled once a new prime minister takes office.