Pressure grows for UK ban on Brazilian meat imports

UK farming unions have stepped up calls for a ban on Brazilian meat imports, warning Britain could become a destination for products excluded from the EU.

The NFU, NFU Scotland, NFU Cymru and Ulster Farmers’ Union have branded the lack of government action “unacceptable”, more than a month after ministers were first urged to intervene.

The four unions have now written jointly to Defra secretary Dame Angela Eagle calling for a UK-wide prohibition on Brazilian products of animal origin (POAO) from 3 September, when new EU restrictions take effect.

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NFU president Tom Bradshaw first raised the issue with Dame Angela during a meeting in her first week in office, amid concerns Brazilian beef and poultry displaced from EU and Norwegian markets could be diverted to Great Britain.

The EU measures follow Brazil’s inability to demonstrate compliance with rules on antimicrobial resistance (AMR), designed to limit the development of antibiotic-resistant infections.

Norway has also confirmed it will implement a ban, while the EU restriction will apply in Northern Ireland under the Windsor Framework.

Consumer transparency

The union presidents said the absence of a government response “is unacceptable, particularly when there is a direct risk to public health and credible reports of significant disruption across the GB supply chain”.

Brazil exported 92,363t of beef and beef products and 211,000t of poultry meat to the EU in 2025, raising concerns that exporters could seek alternative markets once the restrictions take effect.

Brazilian beef imports were already rising before the EU restrictions, with HMRC figures analysed by the AHDB showing UK volumes increased 33% year-on-year to about 15,000t during the first half of 2026.

Fresh and frozen beef imports increased by 43% and 47% respectively, while the total value of Brazilian beef entering the UK rose 42%.

The unions also highlighted consumer transparency because much Brazilian meat entering Britain is destined for food service, where country-of-origin labelling is not required.

UK livestock producers have cut antibiotic use by almost 60% since 2014, while use of antibiotics considered critically important for human health has fallen 83%.

Antibiotics for growth promotion have been banned in the UK and EU since 2006.

Mr Bradshaw said: “If we don’t, there’s a real risk that public confidence in our food system will be undermined if consumers believe GB is importing beef or poultry meat that both EU and non-EU countries have deemed unsafe.

“At the same time, it would distort trade flows with Brazilian meat being diverted onto our market, putting additional pressure on producers in Britain, where the use of antimicrobials for growth promotion has rightly been outlawed for more than two decades.”

Equal standards

The unions want Brazilian POAO prohibited until the country can demonstrate meat exported to Britain is produced responsibly, alongside an in-person audit of production and traceability systems and increased checks and sampling.

They are also seeking core production standards applying equally to domestic and imported food.

The move would also avoid additional complications for trade with Northern Ireland when the EU restrictions come into force on 3 September.