The UK Government has now passed the Withdrawal Agreement bill and will leave the EU on or before the 31^st January.

Once formally signed by the EU, the UK will enter an implementation period, to last until the 31^st December 2020. 

Currently nothing changes for your business

The UK will remain in the EU’s customs union and single market for the duration of the implementation period and all EU rules and regulations will still apply.

We will keep you informed of any changes taking place that might affect your business.

As part of the implementation of the deal, certain equivalency arrangements may be agreed. Depending on what arrangement are agreed, after 31^st December 2020 there may be:

• implications for trade of organic products between the UK , the EU and other markets. This applies to seeds, plants, livestock, crops and feed. Textiles and cosmetic products are not affected

• new requirements for import of organic products into the UK from the EU and third countries
  
• new documentation and requirements for exporting organic products to the EU and third countries
  
• new labelling requirements for exporting organic to the EU and EU approved third countries

We've compiled a simple checklist to help you prepare for the end of the Brexit implementation period on the 31st December 2020:

✅  Before exporting to the EU, ensure that either the UK or Soil Association Certification has EC approval, that your labelling complies with new requirements and register with the TRACES NT portal as an exporter (not possible until after 31st December 2020)

✅ Please note that your certification documents may also change

✅ Before you export to any non-EU country, ensure that they will accept UK product after the 31^st and that your labelling complies with any organic national requirement

✅ If you are importing from a non-EU country, ensure that your exporter is aware of the requirement for any new UK organic documentation. Read more about importing.

The Government have issued guidance to help all farmers and growers prepare for Brexit. This includes information on a range of issues including farm and rural payments, importing and exporting and seasonal workers. For a comprehensive list of changes please visit the Government’s website.

Tariffs

At the end of the implementation period there could be changes to the tariffs on products being imported into the UK and products being exported from the UK. The Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board (AHDB) has provided useful calculation on the different rates for each product categories that you can view here

Exports of live animals and animal products

At the end of the implementation period there could be changes to rules for exports of live animals and products of animal origin, such as meat, fish and dairy. Exports can continue until at least the end of 2020 as the UK listed status has been confirmed by the EU member states.  For more information click here.

The Country Land and Business Association (CLA) have also published a helpful no-deal advice pack.

Acceptance of UK organic products by the EU and EU approved third countries after the 31^st December 2020 will be dependent on equivalency arrangements clarified during the implementation period

Until 31^st December 2020 organic food, feed and drink from the UK will continue to be accepted by the EU, EEC nations and EU approved third countries.

If equivalency is not established by the end of the implementation period, individual approval of UK certifiers (EC1235) may be required and Soil Association Certification will work to ensure we have EC1235 approval.

It is not yet clear how imports of organic products will be affected at the end of the implementation period, but until 31^st December 2020:

• organic food, feed and drink from the EU, EU approved third countries and EU approved certified in other third countries will continue to be accepted by the UK and will not require checks.
• No additional paperwork or Certificates of Inspection will need to be completed
• Certificates of Inspection will continue to be required via the EC TRACES system

What’s staying the same?

Nothing will change to the Soil Association organic standards post-Brexit and we will continue to maintain our existing high standards. 

All UK certifiers will continue to certify UK organic businesses for UK trade.

What’s changing?

New UK organic food & farming statutory instruments have now been passed into law, ready to become regulation after Brexit. In anticipation of continued access to EU market these will remain closely aligned with existing EU organic regulations.

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Nothing will change until 31^st December 2020. If the Withdrawal Bill is passed, we will continue to be treated as a Member State until the end of the implementation period and will be required to meet the EU Regulation.

As such, all labelling will need to continue to adhere to the EU labelling rules.

Once the implementation period has ended, unless SA Certification has approval from the European Commission (EC), or we have clarity on new UK-EU  “equivalency arrangements” then:

• the EU organic logo should no longer be used in the UK.  
• Certification codes for labelling of both domestic product and export product may change (e.g Soil Association Certification’s current code “GB – ORG – 05” may no longer apply and different codes for domestic and exported product could be required)
• references to where the product was produced (EU or non-EU) may also need to change

As the organic experts in the UK we provide a wealth of free information and guidance to our organic licensees.

If you can’t find what you’re looking for on these pages, please get in touch with your Certification Officer or email: brexitsupport@soilassociation.org