• • • How will Brexit impact on animal feed?
A ‘no-deal’ Brexit would be “an immense political failure on both sides of the equation”. That’s what Prof. Michael Wallace (Republic of Ireland) told delegates at the R&H Hall conference last month. He continued to say that it would result in an increase of approximately €55/t on the cost of a ‘typical’ cattle compound crossing the border. He added that the scenario was unlikely, but warned of its consequences.
The first obvious impact of Brexit on the feed sector will be the addition of extra transaction costs. Michael added that lower non-tarriff barriers for feedstuffs can be expected on feedstuffs compared to animal products. He estimated that the ‘tariff equivalent’ would put a 2-5% cost on trade between the Republic of Ireland and the UK. At 2%, that adds approximately €5/t onto the feed price and at 5% it equates to €12/t. This results in the price of imported feed from the UK being €1-3/t more expensive than other feed imports. These extra costs will be diluted through big shipments and the real effect might be seen in cross-border feed deliveries – which are smaller, Michael noted.
Source: https://www.agriland.ie/farming-news/how-will-brexit-impact-on-animal-feed/
