A major new report has warned that Brexit could leave the UK open to meat imports that undermine current domestic production standards, putting British producers at a competitive disadvantage.  

The House of Lords’ EU Energy and Environment Sub-Committee published the latest of its Brexit reports on farm animal welfare on Tuesday. The report finds that UK currently has some of the highest welfare standards in the world and that there is cross-sector support for maintaining strengthening standards after Brexit.

However, the Lords also reveal that, where demand for higher welfare products is reliant on consumers paying extra for them, shoppers won’t always support better welfare options, which they warn could exacerbate the challenge to UK farmers' competitiveness from an increase in cheaper imports produced to lower welfare standards.

The report’s release coincides with Trade Secretary Liam Fox’s trip to Washington DC for the first round of talks that will establish the groundwork for a US-UK trade deal. Dr Fox left yesterday amidst rumours of a split in the Cabinet between Defra Secretary Michael Gove and his predecessor Andrea Leadsom (now leader of the Commons) who want to keep farming out of trade negotiations and maintain food standards, and Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson and Dr Fox who are keen to include farming in talks. In the US, the big farm lobby is pushing for agriculture’s inclusion in talks, which would open up the UK to their produce, much of which is produced under conditions that are banned in the EU.

Speaking on Monday, after being challenged by pro-EU group Open Britain to eat a chlorine-washed chicken whilst in the States, Dr Fox accused the British media of being “obsessed” with the issue, which he said represents a very small part of the final stages of a possible free-trade agreement between the UK and US.

Even so, the Lords’ Committee report finds that “The greatest threat to farm animal welfare standards post-Brexit would come from UK farmers competing against cheap, imported food from countries that produce to lower standards than the UK.” They said the Government's promise that the UK will become a global leader in free trade doesn’t seem compatible with pledges by ministers to maintain high animal welfare standards.

On Tuesday, Committee chair Lord Teverson said,  “The UK has some of the highest farm animal welfare standards in the world and UK producers are rightly proud of those. We see no reason why Brexit should diminish those, as long as the Government is aware of the challenges ahead and acts accordingly.


"We heard evidence of undeniable concern that opening up the UK market to free global trade poses a number of issues. As we said in our last report, Brexit: agriculture, the Government may find it hard to reconcile its free trade ambitions with its commendable desire for preserving high farm animal welfare standards.


"We heard overwhelming support for farm animal welfare standards to be maintained or improved. To help achieve that, we urge the Government to secure the inclusion of high farm animal welfare standards in any free trade agreements it negotiates after Brexit.”


"Whilst Brexit provides the UK with the unique opportunity to review and potentially improve farm animal welfare standards, the Government will need to consider the effect of increasing standards on the competitiveness of UK producers as well the future trading relationship with the EU."

The Lords Committee report also found there is an overwhelming reliance on workers from outside the UK in crucial veterinary positions in the country. Though last week Keele University and Harper Adams revealed they have held talks about a possible new veterinary college to train up vets post-Brexit, the industry’s professional body the British Veterinary Association remains concerned about Brexit’s effect on vets; BVA questioned whether the UK even has the capacity to deliver the quality of teaching necessary after Brexit, given that 25% of veterinary academics in the country come from elsewhere in the EU.

Lord Teverson commented, “The report also found there is an overwhelming reliance on non-UK EU citizens to fill crucial official veterinary positions in the UK. The Committee calls on the Government to ensure that the industry is able to retain or recruit qualified staff to fill these roles post-Brexit.”