Salmon exports to EU worth 10% less in February
The value of Scottish salmon exported to the European Union in February was £22.9 million, which is £2.7 million (10.4%) lower than in the same month last year, according to figures published by the Food and Drink Federation (FDF) today.
That may be due to a combination of continuing delays caused by the extra paperwork required to export products to the EU and because the spot price for salmon was considerably lower in the first two months of 2021 than last year.
Whisky was the only one of the top 10 food and drink products exported to the EU to experience an increase, with sales worth an extra 9.3%.
Dairy disaster
Salmon fared better than most, with the value of milk and cream exports plunging by 96.4% from £24.2m in February 2020 to just £900,000 in the same month this year.
Cheese was down by 64.6%, beef by 77.6% and chicken by 79.5%.
The FDF’s head of international trade, Dominic Goudie, said: “While UK food and drink exports to the EU have improved from a 76% fall in January, they are still down nearly 41% in February 2021.
Inconsistent demands
“Exports to our biggest market, Ireland, have also dropped more than two thirds. UK businesses continue to struggle with inconsistent and incorrect demands at EU borders, and small businesses have been hardest hit due to the collapse of groupage distribution into the EU.
“New EU import requirements for composite products entered into force this week, adding even greater complexity, cost and uncertainty for UK exporters. It is essential that the EU-UK Partnership Council and its Trade Specialised Committees are convened to urgently address problems with the implementation of the EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement to ensure small businesses are not shut out of trade by this trade deal.”
