Western Morning News

Demand for Westcountr­y seafood will break down trade barriers

-

IF coronaviru­s were not such an allconsumi­ng issue for the majority of the British population at the moment, there is no question that the crisis for British fishermen, particular­ly those landing and exporting shellfish, would be winning far more prominent exposure from broadcaste­rs and the national media.

Complicate­d paperwork, the potential for delays in the delivery of highly perishable goods and, one suspects, a good deal of bloodymind­edness on the part of European Union bureaucrat­s is threatenin­g an entire industry.

Of course there is huge potential to grow the home market in fresh fish and shellfish. As we said in this column on Monday, initiative­s like the one from a consortium of Cornish fish producers to get more Cornish sole, or megrim, and more spider crab meat on to UK dinner plates is a good one. It deserves to succeed and UK celebrity chefs can and should do their bit to promote local seafood as enthusiast­ically as possible.

But the market for British seafood has been Europe-wide for decades. The tradition of exporting much of the catch – up to 90% of the landings at some UK ports – has driven the expansion and the success of South West fisheries, in particular. With access to our own waters assured through Brexit, fishermen operating off the Westcountr­y should be enjoying a boom.

Instead, thanks to lockdown shutting all the restaurant­s and red tape blocking exports to Europe, many are barely surviving.

That has to change. And, while his excuses that these hold-ups were merely teething troubles made Environmen­t Secretary George Eustice look as if he was not taking serious concerns seriously, there is every likelihood this exports ‘log-jam’ will be freed up soon. In the meantime, support for the fishing industry must be timely and generous.

British fish and shellfish was in great demand in Europe when Britain was in the EU, not because the French and Spanish looked on Britain with brotherly love as a fellow member of the Union, but because French and Spanish chefs and home cooks demanded it.

That won’t have changed. Quality sells produce. And, while barrierfre­e trade obviously helps, even if there are hoops through which buyers have to jump, sooner or later they’ll do just that. It works in the other direction too.

Some smaller UK wine importers have reported problems getting hold of the bottles their customers want since the end of the Brexit transition, but there is every likelihood the British thirst for the drinks they love will win out in the end. Our prediction is that trade, both from the UK to the EU and from Europe into Britain, will settle back down to pre-Brexit levels in fairly short order.

Our fishermen need to hold their nerve and our government continue to make the case to the EU that they are unreasonab­ly, even illegally, holding up trade. In the end, though, it will be hungry diners who are missing their scallops, their lobsters, their crabs and their prawns who will make the difference. And normal service can resume.

Newspapers in English

Newspapers from United Kingdom