No-deal Brexit might lead to empty shelves in U.K. supermarkets

Being an island with proximity to the European mainland has made the U.K. highly dependent on the EU for its food needs. In 2017, the U.K. produced exactly half of its food consumption needs, with 30 percent of the food consumed being imported from the EU. 

On the contrary, U.K.’s food exports have always been modest in comparison to its import numbers. The difference is perhaps felt the hardest in the fruit and vegetable segment, with exports of £1.2 billion and imports of £11.1 billion in 2017 — a substantial trade deficit that could come to haunt the Britons after October 31. 

The problem with food is that it is perishable, with long queues and drayage idling time at the ports directly affecting the quality of food that comes ashore after customs clearance. However, Rycroft assured that though this might cause logistics hiccups initially, it will not lead to a situation in which the U.K. will be left to starve. 

The manner of exit will be an added concern considering the time of Brexit, which roughly coincides with the start of winter, when food imports to the U.K. from the EU are in full vigor. Rycroft mentioned that the U.K. imports close to 60 percent of all its food from the start of November, coinciding with the date of Brexit. He believed that the cost of preparing for a no-deal Brexit would amount to £100 million a week in reserve warehousing and alternative distribution costs. 

Even during the original March Brexit deadline, businesses were looking to import dry food products to the U.K. to stock them, fearing complexities at the ports. Companies now look toward less-congested U.K. ports for moving their products, with some companies even looking to reserve air freight capacity in the run-up to the October deadline. 

One of the lesser-discussed issues within the food logistics realm is the human quotient to its value chain. The U.K. is home to several thousand expats from mainland Europe who work in the country as truck drivers, warehouse workers and as supermarket employees. And if the going gets tough in the U.K. post-Brexit, there is a very real possibility of these people returning home, leaving the U.K. short of labour.