The effective ban on trade of seed potatoes between GB and the EU is a result of the UK and European Commission being unable to reach an SPS agreement that would allow the reciprocal trade of seed potatoes. Pre 2021, around 30,000 tonnes of GB seed potatoes were exported each year into the EU, principally from Scotland, with a similar amount of EU seed potatoes imported into the UK.

This trade has developed and flourished because of the recognised high quality of seed potatoes grown in GB underpinned by baseline standards that UK growers continue to comply with today. Scotland, Cumbria and Northumberland (in Northern England) were recognised within the European Union as a Community Grade region, applying strict health standards and producing and marketing only Pre-Basic and Basic seed potatoes.

The resumption of EU-GB trade of seed potatoes remains a live issue for both UK and the European industries, and a priority for the UK, having raised it all levels of Trade & Cooperation Agreement (TCA) governance since 2021.

In autumn of 2024, the European Commission undertook a plant health audit of GB’s seed potato production system which was a positive step to resuming trade, but there remain further stages to overcome. The Commission needs to produce an audit report, that will form the basis of a recommendation to SCOPAFF (Standing Committee on Plants, Animals, Food and Feed). A swift audit report is now therefore necessary as an important step to resume trade ahead of the 2025 planting season.

The prohibition on the import of GB seed potatoes into the EU cannot be justified based on current plant health and marketing standards in either the EU or UK. Urgent action is needed by the EU Commission and the UK government to agree a new model to facilitate reciprocal trade in seed potatoes between GB and the EU.

The UK maintains equivalent EU requirements for strict health standards of production and marketing of seed potatoes which are unlikely to diverge given the high standards attached to production in these areas.

Denying EU potato growers access to GB seed potatoes unnecessarily impacts European ware producers both in terms of variety requirements and provenance. We call on the EU Commission and the UK government to urgently reach an agreement to allow trade in certified seed potatoes to and from the EU to start again.