The United Kingdom will lose access to RASFF after Brexit and Britain’s future relationship with EFSA remains unclear, says the British public health minister. Britain’s future trade with US food companies is also uncertain, with some in the UK saying certain food safety practices in the United States are unacceptable.
Questioned by the British Parliament’s Energy and Environment Committee this week, Minister Steve Brine, MP, confirmed the UK would not be able to vote in the Standing Committee on Plants, Animals, Food and Feed or have access to the Rapid Alert System for Food and Feed (RASFF) after the UK’s exit from the European Union later this month.
Brine admitted it is not known what the UK’s relationship with the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) will be, and whether Britain will retain access to food safety risk assessment work.
Lord Robin Teverson, chair of the committee, has said the lack of clarity is deeply concerning in the scenario that an agreement is reached and there is a transition period.
