A couple of hundred tons of mussels that would have previously fetched about 160,000 euros ($194,000) now lie in the muck, not worth harvesting. Mr. Wilson has furloughed three of his six workers.
Even those who can reach European markets have discovered that the promised bonfire of regulations is actually a burning hell of paperwork.
In the southwest of England, a few miles from the village that gave its name to Cheddar cheese, one cheesemaker, Lye Cross, anticipates spending an extra £125,000 ($173,000) a year to comply with the administrative requirements that have accompanied Brexit. A transaction that last year entailed seven steps, including paying and invoicing, now runs to 39, said Ben Hutchins, the company’s sales and marketing director.