The UK’s historic Brexit vote may have been almost a decade ago, but the fall out has rumbled on interminably – now, EU rules on oat production are the latest flashpoint threatening to undermine government efforts to work with the bloc.
Ministers are said to be engaged in a battle to save the humble oatcake, as Keir Starmer’s government seeks to reset relations with the EU.
UK efforts to realign agricultural policy with Brussels means that British oats could fall foul of regulations for being too mouldy – containing too high a level of mycotoxins – which proliferate in crops like oats when they are grown in damper coastal climates like Britain’s.
Farming groups raised concerns last year following the introduction by the European Commission of restrictions on mycotoxin levels in foods sold in the EU.
Consumed at high levels, mycotoxins can be damaging to human health. As well as cereal crops, they can be found in nuts and dried fruits, and eaten in large quantities can lead to various adverse health effects, including kidney and liver damage, immune suppression, and have been linked to cancer.
The concern for British farmers is that during damp, warm seasons, much of Britain’s oat harvest risks being condemned as unfit for human consumption under these EU rules, rendering the crop unsellable.
However, a 2014 Food Standards Agency study found that while trace toxins were detectable across a broad range of oat‑based foods, the levels sat comfortably “below the tolerable daily intake”.
The UK’s own rules on mycotoxin levels were reviewed following the European Commission’s changes last year, and found current guidance to be adequate.
Tom Bradshaw, president of the National Farmers Union, has described the reset with the EU as a “threat”, should the UK become subject to tighter rules.
He told The Times: “The EU’s decision to change their regulations on mycotoxins is a significant threat to British cereal farmers. Already, as a result of this decision, if you have a wet year then that could limit exports of cereal crops like oats to the EU, and products made with oats like oatcakes.”
He added: “But the real worry comes with the EU reset, which means we in the UK will also have to apply this regulation here. That would be devastating for farmers who could be faced with an entire crop that is unsellable as well as threatening supply of produce such as porridge oats and oatcakes.”
The outrage is reminiscent of the so-called “Brexit sausage wars”, in which Britain and the EU clashed over the movement of chilled meats across the Irish Sea, sparking a political food fight in which the sausage became an absurd symbol of the bureaucratic tangles and surreal theatre which defined post-Brexit politics.
Eventually the stalemate was resolved through a negotiated truce in which the EU agreed to lift its ban on British exports of chilled meats to Northern Ireland in exchange for long‑term access to UK fishing waters.
As the government seeks to reset relations with Brussels, it has said there will need to be various areas where existing UK rules are retained, but it is unclear if the EU will agree to bend the rules to accommodate any elevated mycotoxin levels.
A government spokesperson told The Independent: “A food and drink deal will slash red tape and costs, support British businesses and could add up to £5.1bn a year to the economy.
“In May we agreed with the EU that there will be some areas where we have a carve out from EU rules.”
But they added: “We won’t get ahead of the talks starting next week.”
