"Since Brexit, deliveries of animal and plant products between Britain and the EU have required paperwork and been subject to stringent inspections at the border as a part of sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) controls. All plant products rated as high or medium risk including bedding plants, cut flowers and bark are inspected, with the checks aimed at enhancing Britain's biosecurity and preventing harmful plant and animal diseases from entering the country."
"A recent shipment of olive trees from a nursery in Pistoia in Italy, destined for Premier Plants near Chelmsford in Essex, was held up for five days, according to the company's co-founder Karl Clark. It's frustrating and adds cost. We have been importing plants from Italy for over 20 years and never had these sorts of problems before Brexit, Clark said."
"Importers of plants say long delays and damage to shipments at a Kent border control post risk driving up prices and could lead to transport companies stopping deliveries across the Channel. Traders have reported long waits in recent weeks at the government's Sevington facility off the M20 near Ashford, which was built to check goods of plant and animal origin arriving from the EU."
Long waits and damage to plant shipments at the Sevington border control post off the M20 near Ashford are adding costs and delaying deliveries. The facility performs sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) checks on high- and medium-risk plant products entering from the EU, including bedding plants, cut flowers and bark, to protect Britain's biosecurity. Trucks have been held for several days, with some loads incurring about 200 of extra costs and repeated damage to trees and shrubs during unloading and reloading. Delays occur in waves and can disrupt daily deliveries, risking higher prices and potential transport firms ceasing Channel operations.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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