Dear All,
Detailed below is the Weekly News covering Covid and Brexit updates and at the very end an invitation to attend UK Flour Millers, previously nabim, R&D webinar.
Have a good week.
Gordon Polson
Chief Executive – Federation of Bakers Ltd
FOB Chief Executive’s Weekly News for 8th February 2021
The Bank of England has published its February Monetary Policy Report, the link to which is below. Also attached is a direct link to the Agents’ Summary section of the report: 2021-02-economy-in-brief-february
PDF version of the MPR https://www.bankofengland.co.uk/-/media/boe/files/monetary-policy-report/2021/february/monetary-policy-report-february-2021.pdf
MPC summary and minutes https://www.bankofengland.co.uk/monetary-policy-summary-and-minutes/2021/february-2021
Here is the direct link to the Agents Box in the MPR
CBI Highlights of this month’s Economy in brief include:
- With deaths now having surpassed 100,000, and the latest virus variant in the UK judged to be more dangerous than the original, it remains hard to judge when the worst will be behind us. Meanwhile, companies are now starting to experience the reality of the UK’s new trading relationship with the EU
- The IMF recently published its spring World Economic Outlook update. The UK’s longer lockdowns and extensive school closures, coupled with a higher weight of consumer-facing industries, and complicated by a different approach to the measurement of health and education output, have left it one of the worst performing advanced economies in 2020
- But there are grounds for optimism once lockdown begins to ease. From our observation of the UK’s economic performance during the ebb and flow of lockdowns over the past year, we have seen the responsiveness of consumer spending in operation. As the economy reopened during the summer, retail sales recovered such that they’d exceeded February’s pre-pandemic levels by July
Industry Mass Testing– The latest verbal information is that PCR tests requirement for a positive LFT test is suspended. The scheme appaers to have been extended to all businesses with more tha 50 employees.
Scotland is expected to have a scheme similar to England but detauils are not available yet.
Wales-The proposed scheme is not just focussed on the food iondustry, but will be across the board and will depend on bering granted the facility.
NI-I don’t have any detailed information but I understand the PCR test is still manadatory.
South African Variant-there is no more speccific information other than emphaising that key workers, such as food, are exempt from the call to stay at home.
There is a surge in testing deployed to monitor and suppress spread of the variant
Additional testing is being made available in locations where the variant has been found.
Haulier Drivers: See latest social media post on guidance for hauliers on taking food and drink to the EU in personal baggage.
Collecting and transporting groupage consignments: Defra and DAERA have worked with hauliers to establish a new Groupage model which will aid the movements of these loads into Northern Ireland. Following successful trials with industry (involving taking goods from GB to NI), two Groupage models have been agreed.
EFSA to advise on harmonised front-of-pack labelling & claims on foods
The European Commission (EC) has asked the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) to provide scientific advice on: nutrients of public health importance for European populations, including non-nutrient components of food, such as energy or dietary fibre; food groups which have important roles in the diets of European populations and subgroups; and criteria to guide the choice of nutrients and other non-nutrient components of food for nutrient profiling. The request to EFSA does not include developing a nutrient profiling model or advising on current profiling models already in use for different purposes. EFSA’s scientific advice will be used by the Commission to inform a proposal for harmonised, mandatory front-of-pack nutrition labelling and for the setting of nutrient profiles to restrict the promotion of foods high in salt, sugars and/or fat. It will also inform the setting of conditions for nutrition and health claims on foods. The Commission plans to publish its proposal by the end of 2022 and EFSA is required to deliver its scientific opinion by March 2022. EFSA will consult publicly on a draft opinion by the end of 2021. To support this work, EFSA will draw on its own advice on dietary reference values and nutrient profiles; published reviews on dietary recommendations for healthy diets; national food-based dietary guidelines in European countries; and a comprehensive review of front-of-pack labelling schemes provided by the Commission.
POST report on UK food & drink reformulation policies
The Parliamentary Office of Science and Technology (POST) has published a new research briefing paper, reporting on the UK’s food and drink reformulation policies and setting out the evidence on public health benefits and the effectiveness of different policies. It also explores challenges and opportunities for reformulation and describes some of the complementary approaches to improve public health.
UK food & drink labelling post-Brexit
Responding to a question from Jo Gideon, the Defra Minister, Victoria Prentis, set out the current position with regard to UK Government consultations on food labelling – including calorie labelling on alcohol on which a consultation is expected “shortly”. Interestingly she also said that the post-Brexit review of food labelling to ensure that information “supports UK consumers’ safe, healthy and sustainable food choices and also Great British food products” would “include careful consideration of how food labelling might contribute to the outcomes of the National Food Strategy, which is looking in detail at creating a better food system for people and for the environment.”
EFRA Committee follow up to Covid-19 & food supply inquiry
The Commons Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Select Committee is meeting at 3pm on 9 February to take oral evidence from a range of witnesses from the hospitality, food supply and voluntary sectors to follow up its inquiry last year into the impact of Covid-19 on UK food supplies (report). The Committee will consider food insecurity, support for children eligible for free school meals, access to food for vulnerable groups and Government support for hospitality businesses and their food and drink suppliers. The Committee has repeatedly called on the Government to demonstrate its long term commitment to UK food security by appointing a Minister for Food Security.
Soft Drinks Industry Levy receipts
The Treasury Minister, Kemi Badenoch, has confirmed that since its introduction in April 2018, the Soft Drinks Industry Levy (SDIL) has raised £240 million in 2018-2019, £337 million in 2019-2020, and the provisional 2020-21 year to date (April to December 2020) total is £224 million. There is no formal link between SDIL revenues and specific spending programmes, but some of the receipts have been used to support public health programmes. [Source: Parliament website 2 Feb. 2021]
Brexit Links and reminders
Moving Goods Trader Showcase migration
The online Trader Showcase site that you’ve been using to find out about the new rules for moving goods to Northern Ireland and exporting to the EU has been migrated to two new locations, which you can access by using the links below:
Moving goods from Great Britain to Northern Ireland
Exporting goods from Great Britain to the European Union
The new Trader Showcase has been developed using Dropbox Paper, which usually requires users to have an account to access content. We recommend opening a free account – which involves a basic registration process – if you don’t already have one.
The new Trader Showcase site works with most modern browsers, but is best viewed using Chrome, Firefox, Safari and the latest two versions of Edge.
Links to Defra’s Exporter Journey GB to EU Webinars
Links to our recorded webinars on the GB to EU Exporter Journey are now available on YouTube. Please share with anyone who may find this information useful. The topics are:
Exporting Products of Animal Origin
Exporting Fish and Fishery Products for Human Consumption
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Nabim Webinar
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