The food and drink industry has been quick to react to yesterday’s announcement of the new EU-UK trade deal, whish set out post-Brexit relations on fishing rights and farming exports.
The BBC was just one of the many news outlets – including The Grocer – to have reported on responses to the landmark deal from major businesses and retailers, with many calling the agreement a “leap forward” that made “genuine progress”. The Guardian called it a “rational step forward”, while Reuters hailed the move as “the most significant reset of defence and trade ties with the European Union since Brexit”.
Morrisons’ chief executive Rami Baitiéh said the move would “ease a source of pressure on food prices”, while Asda said the agreement had the potential to ”significantly reduce costs and bureaucracy” for the fresh produce imported from the EU, as well as exports to Northern Ireland.
The Confederation of British Industry, the British Chambers of Commerce, UKHospitality and the Food & Drink Federation are among the business groups that have praised the UK-EU deal, although some have warned that more still needs to be done. And it was simply too late for some, according to a UK cheesemaker interviewed in The Guardian – who was forced to sell his business because of a £600,000 loss caused by Brexit red tape.
Back on Britain’s high streets, The Independent’s report that Greggs has removed self-serve fridges from its stores in a bid to counter the rise in shoplifting being seen across the country has been picked up by other media.
The bakery chain has released the new trial format in a number of stores, meaning customers will now be unable to select their own chilled sandwiches and drinks. Instead, a shop assistant is needed to hand over selected items from behind the counter.
It has also been widely reported that Guinness owner Diageo is bracing itself for the impact of the US tariffs, which are expected to cost the drinks giant around £113m. Diageo has said it believes its major cost-cutting plans will mitigate around half the impact of these additional costs.
The Guardian has warned investors that while all else might seem to be fine, the market should “wait and see”, as share prices are is still lower than they were in February and remain 40% below its “post-pandemic party-time highs” of early 2022.
Dutch technology investor Prosus has formally launched its £3.4bn takeover of Just Eat in its bid to create a European tech “champion”, according to The Independent. The firm already owns a 28% stake in Just Eat rival Delivery Hero.
The deal was provisionally agreed in February, and this formalisation of the agreement follows UK-listed Deliveroo recently announcing a £2.9bn takeover by its US rival DoorDash. Just Eat Takeaway.com will continue to be based in Amsterdam and will maintain its key brands following the deal.
Elsewhere. a report from from Tony Blair’s think tank has said that the rapidly increasing access to anti-obesity medications such as Wegovy and Mounjaro would significantly cut the benefits bill. Detail in The Times story estimates that by sending the weight-loss medication through the post, some 15 million NHS patients could be helped.
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