A new report commissioned by Bord Bia titled Food and Drink Supply Chain Logistics: Strategies for Success has warned that delays and tariffs could hit Irish food exports to Britain and the EU after Brexit.
As reported by The Irish Times, the report states, "A significant risk which has been identified is the potential disruption to the frictionless movement of exports through the UK to other export markets.
"These product flows could be subject to future tariffs of delays, and new supply chains to service existing markets need to be explored by companies."
Worst Case Scenario
In a scenario where the UK and EU do not operate within the same customs regime, products bring shipped to other European countries via the UK could be hit with delays.
The report goes on to suggest that such delays could range from five minutes for straightforward loads to considerably longer for more complex shipments to multiple customers, which could adversely impact products with shorter shelves lives.
Furthermore, the report warms that the cost of Irish food and drink exports to the UK could be driven up were the UK and EU to operate different tariff structures.
It states, "With this extreme scenario, Irish producers would need to review both their manufacturing sourcing options and their target markets."
© 2018 Hospitality Ireland – your source for the latest industry news. Article by Dave Simpson. Click subscribe to sign up for the Hospitality Ireland print edition.
