Europeans don't want British sausages, says The Black Farmer
European shoppers do not want to eat British sausages regardless of Sir Keir Starmer's trade deal, the founder of The Black Farmer has said.
Wilfred Emmanuel-Jones, who sells a range of meat products under his brand, hit out at claims that the Prime Minister's trade deal with the EU would deliver a major boost to British sausage manufacturers.
Mr Emmanuel-Jones said: 'They didn't take our sausages in great quantities in the first place, so there's no win there. And actually, even burgers and a lot of the foods that we have in this country, they don't eat in Europe, not on a big scale. So I don't see that we've gained anything.'
His comments come after the Prime Minister signed a deal with the European Union (EU) on Monday in a move touted as a 'reset' of relations with the bloc.
No10 said the deal, which means routine checks on animal and plant products exported to the EU are removed, would make it easier for British companies to sell products such as burgers and sausages to Europe once more, following a steep drop in exports after Brexit.
Describing the situation before Monday's announcement of the deal, Jonathan Reynolds, the Business Secretary, told BBC Radio 4's Today programme: 'We've got a situation where, after Brexit, we've got the same food standards in place on both sides of the border, yet our agricultural food exports are down by a fifth.
'You can't sell some products at all. A British sausage made in my constituency ... Hyde [Greater Manchester], you can't sell those. Can't sell burgers. We've got no real reason for that situation continuing.'
Exports of chilled meats to the EU have effectively been outlawed since 2021 because the bloc does not allow imports of them from non-EU countries (although this did not apply to frozen sausages).
However, Mr Emmanuel-Jones added: 'I've been with the trade envoy to France and Spain to try to get them to eat our sausages. They're not interested. They don't understand it.
'I can remember going to France to do a sampling of British sausages. Because in Europe, all their sausages are pre-cooked, I had to stop somebody eating them raw.'
Britain imports far more sausages from Europe than it exports. According to HMRC data, Britain exported one and a half thousand tonnes of sausages in the first half of 2024, down from almost 2,000 tonnes in 2020. In contrast, Britain imported 77,600 tonnes of sausages in that period.
According to the Observatory of Economic Complexity (OEC), sausages are Britain's 736th most exported product.
Mr Emmanuel-Jones said: 'France, Italy and Spain, they're very protective towards their own food culture. Apart from whisky, I can't see that many of our foods are accepted in those sort of countries.'
Mr Emmanuel-Jones launched his food brand in 2000 after buying a farm in Devon. He sells a wide range of meat products including sausages, burgers, bacon and poultry.
While he believes there is little demand for British sausages on the Continent, other food and drink manufacturers have broadly welcomed the trade deal given the prospect of easier trade between the UK and the EU.
Karen Betts, the chief executive of the Food & Drink Federation (FDF) said: 'Europe is our single biggest customer, and most of the food and drink we import – from ingredients to finished products – comes from Europe too.'
However, other British meat exporters have warned that the deal – which dictates that British products are 'dynamically aligned' with EU standards – risks throwing away Brexit freedoms that give them a competitive advantage in other markets.
The International Meat Trade Association said: 'We have concerns that dynamic alignment of UK to EU legislation means loss of the UK's regulatory independence, especially with regard to our rest of world imports which have benefitted from more proportionate import controls.'
The trade body said British exporters' ability to move more quickly than EU rivals was at risk.
The IMTA said: 'The UK has used its independence to reduce levels of ID and physical checks on certain rest-of-world imports, to take a more risk-based approach than the EU.'
It added: 'Food security is national security; food regulation should not be wholly outsourced to the EU, it is important that the UK retains some material influence in this area.'
Tom Bradshaw, the chief executive of the National Farmers Union (NFU), added: 'We have always argued that trade with the EU must be based on equivalency. Despite the benefits this deal brings, full dynamic alignment comes at a significant cost of committing to future EU rules, in which the UK will have little say.'
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