The tomato export volume to the UK during the last campaign did not decrease and remained at the same levels it had before the Brexit. It's as if there had been no Brexit, stated the manager of the Association of Fruit and Vegetable Producer Organizations of Almeria (Coexphal), Luis Miguel Fernandez.
He also highlighted that the Spanish sector has been a supplier to the UK for a long time and that replacing their supply was complicated, as non-EU countries had problems meeting the strict British phytosanitary import requirements.
In general, fruit and vegetable exports have even increased by 4 or 5% at a little higher value, he said. However, he acknowledged that Brexit had increased the bureaucracy and amount of paperwork they had to deal with and that they had to work to adapt to the phytosanitary passport established by the United Kingdom.
Luis Miguel Fernandez also expressed his concern about the agreement that the UK and Morocco have signed for the export of tomatoes and said Spain should do the same thing, although he understands that the companies are willing to maintain a commercial activity.
For the moment, he rules out the need for national companies to create companies in the UK to facilitate exports. The customs process is much more streamlined and the products leave Spain with everything in order.
Source: agrodiario.com