How Brexit is already changing what we eat newstatesman.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from newstatesman.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
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ost-Brexit red tape is already raising the prices of fruit, vegetables and plants at London s historic New Covent Garden Market by up to 10%.
Traders and a top restaurateur warned today that Londoners will register the impact on their plates and in their wallets once hospitality fully reopens and chefs have to pivot towards cheaper produce, while putting up prices.
The Standard has learned that every palette of plants imported to the market from Europe will now cost consumers 10% more, with a 3% to 5% increase in the cost of a palette of fresh fruit or vegetables.
Greengrocer Nature’s Choice has been based at New Covent Garden for 19 years, and supplies chefs including Gordon Ramsay and the team at two Michelin star-Le Gavroche.
Gaps appearing on supermarket fruit and veg shelves are due to Brexit red tape at ports. Lettuce, cauliflower packs and oranges are out of stock in Tesco s in some areas.
The closure of the UK-France border before Christmas over the new strain of COVID-19 highlighted the rapid knock-on impact of any delays.
Now, with the Brexit transition period ending on December 31, there are fears that fresh hold-ups will begin again. That s because regardless of the fact a post-Brexit trade deal has been agreed new customs rules apply from January 1.
Brexit means London and Brussels now have different customs rules and regulatory standards, meaning border checks are necessary. They will apply to UK imports into the EU, but checks on goods coming the other way will be phased in over six months.