Summary
The lapsing of the transitional arrangement for reporting and verifying rules of origin compliance for goods entering from the EU from 1 January 2022, could see serious disruptions arising along a variety of ACP triangular supply chains. Products potentially affected include chilled and fresh fruit and vegetables, cut flowers, fisheries products, clothing products, value added cocoa products and sugar. From 1 January 2022, ‘originating status’ will need to be proved at the point of entry to the UK, and if this cannot be supplied standard MFN tariffs will be levied. This will require a clear understanding of the rules of origin applicable to the particular goods entering the UK. In addition, cargoes may need to visit inland border control facilities for documentation and physical checks, which could extend delivery times. It is only from 1 January 2022 that the full impact of the new rules of origin/MFN tariff complications along ACP triangular supply chains will be felt, with this making the establishment of an appropriate policy solution to this complication a matter of some urgency. Read more “Ending of Transitional Arrangements for ‘Origin’ Declarations Could Pose Serious Challenges to Certain ACP Triangular Supply Chains”
Category: Horticulture
Can the Tesco Commitment Provide a Basis for a Wider Pan European Retailer Programme of Action Ensuring a ‘Living Wage +’ Outcome for Banana Workers?
Summary
Tesco’s latest commitment on ensuring banana plantation workers are paid, at a minimum, a living wage includes two important innovations: independent determination of the living wage requirement and the establishment of a clearly defined timeline for attaining living wage objectives. This approach is indicative of the kind of ‘best practice’ which the EC ‘Code of Conduct on Responsible Food Business and Marketing Practices’ would like to see generally adopted (including in other sector such as the cocoa sector). By concentrating responsibility for establishing living wage levels at the level of the stakeholder with the greatest power within the supply chain, the Tesco initiative offers a real prospect of progress on living wage issues. This would be particularly the case, if it was generalised across products and throughout the corporate family of which Tesco forms a part (ABF). Read more “Can the Tesco Commitment Provide a Basis for a Wider Pan European Retailer Programme of Action Ensuring a ‘Living Wage +’ Outcome for Banana Workers?”
Some Implications of the EU Code of Conduct on Responsible Food Business and Marketing Practices for ACP Producers
Summary
The EU’s ‘Code of Conduct on Responsible Food Business and Marketing Practices’ can only be welcomed. However, its limitations, in terms of delivering on objectives which ACP governments, producers and exporters share, need to be recognised. The focus on increased collaboration along the whole of the supply chain, means commitments entered into by EU companies will carry real implications for production practices adopted by ACP suppliers. These implications need to be recognised and addressed, in the context of the Codes commitment to ensuring the social and commercial sustainability of the required changes. In regard to each of the aspirational objectives identified, in operationalising the code of conduct there will be a need for meaningful dialogues with ACP stakeholders and governments, if the burden of necessary adjustments is not to be largely shifted on to the shoulders of ACP primary producers. This will require the identification of appropriate institutional frameworks for the conduct of these meaningful dialogues in each of the major areas of concern. Read more “Some Implications of the EU Code of Conduct on Responsible Food Business and Marketing Practices for ACP Producers”
EC Proposal for Resolving Northern Ireland Protocol Issues Could Offer Model for Addressing ACP Triangular Supply Chain Concerns
Summary
The EC’s proposals to resolve the problem of the implementation of the Northern Ireland Protocol try to accommodate the operational concerns of Northern Ireland business leaders. However, the proposals leave unresolved the fundamental political objections the UK government has advanced, on the basis of the objections of Ulster Unionists. While this reduces the prospect of an early EU/UK agreement on the basis of the EC proposals, the technical proposal advanced nevertheless could offer a model for addressing ACP triangular supply chain concerns. This would require an elaboration of the current principles and modalities underpinning the EC proposals, in order to address the specific realities faced along ACP triangular supply chains. This will require political lobbying by the concerns ACP governments and in-depth technical work by the concerns ACP exporters associations. Read more “EC Proposal for Resolving Northern Ireland Protocol Issues Could Offer Model for Addressing ACP Triangular Supply Chain Concerns”
EC’s “Fit for 55” Plan Roots in Earlier “Farm to Fork Strategy” Carries Implications for ACP-EU Agri-Food Sector Trade
Summary
This is the first in a series of articles which look at the implications of the EU’s new climate change focussed policy documents for ACP-EU agri-food sector trade relations. This article reviews the EU’s basic Farm to Fork strategy, which was first tabled in May 2020, and its implications for ACP-EU agri-food sector relations. A companion article will review the EU’s July 2021 Code of Conduct on Responsible Food Business and Marketing Practices, with both of these articles needing to be read in association with the recent epamonitoring.net article on Afruibana’s appeal to banana buyers in Europe to take on board the dramatic freight and input cost increases, so that all stakeholders in the supply chain carry a fair share of the burden of promoting the necessary ecological and energy transition which the climate crisis demands. Read more “EC’s “Fit for 55” Plan Roots in Earlier “Farm to Fork Strategy” Carries Implications for ACP-EU Agri-Food Sector Trade”
West African Banana Producers Call for a Fairer Distribution of Commercial Benefits Along Banana Supply Chains
Summary
Afruibana has sought to raise the importance of addressing the issue of burden sharing along banana supply chains in the context of the dramatic Covid-19 linked freight and input cost escalation now being faced. Afruibana argues addressing burden sharing and equitable pricing issues is essential to support the necessary ‘ecological and energy transition’ in the banana sector. It would appear important to ensure pricing requirements based on Costs of Sustainable Production (COSP) calculations, form an integral part of EU due diligence requirements aimed at getting to grips with climate and livelihood challenges in the developing world. As the Afruibana letter points out this will require everyone in the supply chain to play their part, through international traders, wholesalers, retailers to end consumers. Equally, in the current context, it is important policy choices made in the EU and UK around the Brexit process do not add to costs along already stressed supply chains. Read more “West African Banana Producers Call for a Fairer Distribution of Commercial Benefits Along Banana Supply Chains”
Major UK Player Exits Fresh and Chilled Produce Cross-Border Trade with the EU
Summary
The Marks & Spencer experience of UK-to-EU supply chain disruption hold important lessons for ACP exporters of fresh and chilled products. It highlights three major areas of impact: the vulnerability of fresh and chilled product supply chains to Brexit related disruptions; the importance of phytosanitary import controls to cross border trade in fresh produce; and the critical important of the trade administration burden generated by new post-Brexit requirements for the movement of goods across EU/UK borders, a dimension which can be the final straw that breaks the camel’s back, in terms of the future functioning of triangular supply chains. The Marks & Spencer experience also provides a foretaste of what can be expected along EU-to-UK supply chains from 1 July 2022. Against this background, ACP exporters need to recognise that by being the first to adjust by shifting over to direct exports to the UK, real possibilities could emerge to pick up new business as traditional EU orientated supply chains fall away. Read more “Major UK Player Exits Fresh and Chilled Produce Cross-Border Trade with the EU”
UK Announces a Further Deferment of Full Border Controls on Goods Crossing Over from the EU
Summary
The UK government has announced the deferment of the implementation of a range of controls on goods entering the UK from the EU. While this is nominally in response to Covid-related disruptions, shortcomings in UK government Brexit planning and investment appears equally important. The response of UK businesses to the deferment announcement has been mixed. Concerns have been expressed the problem has simply been ‘kicked down the road’ to avoid a pre-Christmas crisis, while extending the uncertainties over the conditions under which trading operations will take place in the future. There are concerns ongoing uncertainty is having particularly adverse effects on the ‘re-export’ trade along ACP fresh and chilled produce supply chains, with such business operations simply being placed in the ‘too hard’ basket. Against this background there is a need for political initiatives around the issues facing the ACP re-export trade along triangular supply chains, so as to remove uncertainty and restore business confidence in the future of such trading arrangements. Read more “UK Announces a Further Deferment of Full Border Controls on Goods Crossing Over from the EU”
UK HGV Driver Shortage Raises Contractual Issues for ACP Exporters
Summary
The shortage of HGV drivers in the UK is particularly acute and is intensifying. Food and drink supply chains particularly for shirt life products being severely impacted. This raises the issue of burden sharing along ACP export supply chains serving UK markets. Escalating road haulage costs and the value losses resulting from delays need to be taken up and addressed in Incoterms covering ACP exports to the UK, if ACP exporters are not to bear the full burden of escalating costs and value losses. Read more “UK HGV Driver Shortage Raises Contractual Issues for ACP Exporters”
Irish Trade Data on Differential Impact of Border Controls Raises Concerns for Future ACP-EU Triangular Supply Chains
Summary
Recent Irish data highlight the impact of new border controls on trade flows with the UK, with ACP ‘re-exports’ from the UK to Ireland likely to be seriously affected. This is not only a result of general cross-border trade complications generated by the Brexit process, but also due to two specific challenges arising for ‘re-exported’ products: notably the rules of origin/MFN tariff complications for re-exported fresh produce and simple processed products (e.g., from raw to refined sugar) and the additional phytosanitary import documentation requirements, namely the need for ‘phytosanitary re-export certificates’. The delays this can generate pose particular problems of value losses for short shelf-life products. While currently these problems are only faced along ACP-to-UK-to-EU supply chains, from October 2021 onwards, similar problems will be faced along ACP-to-EU-to-UK supply chains, with this potentially posing some serious challenges to current triangular supply chain operations. Read more “Irish Trade Data on Differential Impact of Border Controls Raises Concerns for Future ACP-EU Triangular Supply Chains”