Brexit border checks throw UK flower industry into chaos | Brexit

Of all the impacts of Brexit, the need for flower exporters and customs officials to learn Latin is perhaps the most unexpected.

But this is one of the problems facing UK businesses in the first weeks after the government introduced physical checks on some food and plants in the EU.

Merchants said they received far more inspections than they expected, and in some cases trucks were waved off after waiting for hours without inspection.

The long wait has been a serious problem for some in the flower trade who rely on timely imports from the Netherlands.

The Ministry of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs announced to the industry that its goal is to inspect 3 to 5% of cargo containing medium-risk products such as cut flowers.

On Saturday, Defra claimed it had met this target, but some flower wholesalers said all trucks had been pulled aside for checks and customers had missed deliveries because flowers were stuck at the new 147m facility in Sevington, Kent.

Customs brokers, speaking anonymously, said more than 3% of cargo was being inspected.

Many are also having difficulties with the new Ipaffs (Import of Products, Animals, Food and Feed Systems) computer system. Some plant and flower names were omitted, and the decision to refer to them by their Latin names was a headache for importers.

Freddie Heathcote, owner of flower and plant wholesaler Green and Bloom, said every truck he drives every day is marked for inspection. On Wednesday, his driver arrived at border control in Sevington at 11pm.

He was told to wait where he was, Heathcote said. He sat there for 7 1/2 hours and the truck never opened. And he was told he could leave at 7:10 a.m.

About 50 wholesale orders went out on Thursday, but nothing arrived.

So we couldn't serve that customer.

Around 80% of flowers sold in the UK come from the Netherlands. They are sold at auction in the morning and then transported by ferry between noon and 4pm. Before Brexit, it would be shipped overnight to wholesalers in the UK and delivered to customers within 24 hours of leaving the Netherlands.

Exporters now have to complete Dutch export documents and UK import documents before departure, and any delays risk missing their ferry. Some will be inspected by officials in Sevington as the new round of inspections began on April 30, and delays mean they will not arrive in time for delivery at New Covent Garden Market, the UK's leading flower

Klahee Flowers co-founder Johan Heemskerk said customers need timely orders for weddings and funerals, and the longest delay was nine hours. The new tests are causing significant delays, which is problematic for us and our customers, he said.

Delays of more than 9 hours may result in your flowers arriving too late for your wedding with all the consequences.

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John Davidson, co-owner of Tom Brown Wholesale and director of the British Florists' Association, said 15 trucks arrived in the UK last Tuesday, the first day of inspections. Originally, only one truck was designated for inspection in Sevington, he said. But midway through the trip, they all received texts and emails directing them to Sevington.

Imported plants can be seen at a garden center in London. Photo: Neil Hall/EPA

Upon arrival, at the management office [there] It informed the driver that it was unsure why the conditions had changed and blamed a technical error that allowed the truck to proceed after some delay. By the end of the week, the situation had improved, he added.

Ian Shuttlewood, director of customs and logistics company PML Seafrigo, said the new checks had been challenging for the floral industry. From what I heard, there were slightly more flower checks than expected. Many large childcare centers used to be able to carry out testing in their own facilities, but are currently unable to do so.

He added that Defra officials had worked hard to get the Ipaffs system working, but there were still problems. You have to put in the original Latin name, which is an absolute nightmare for someone like me who has never spoken Latin before, he said.

Here's a cheat sheet to help you add blueberries and get the Latin name. We found that there were many shortcomings [on the system]. We had to put things in, maybe chrysanthemums, instead of roses or something like that, and they weren't there, so we had to report them as something else. A customs official who did not want to be named said the arriving driver. In Sevington, the long wait was frustrating. They said the trucks could not be left unattended for nine hours without all rations delivered. There is a huge direct cost to the industry. The shelf life of flowers is not very long.

Defra said there had been a small number of cases where customs clearance times were prolonged due to technical and information errors by companies. It said it has been working with companies on the need for accurate data entry and is working closely with industry.

Claims that the new checks have caused confusion are false. Our team has worked closely with traders to ensure inspections are completed efficiently and quickly.

We continue to work with our traders to ensure all documentation is completed accurately before they begin their journey.

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