The government has confirmed that the planned ‘Not for EU’ labels scheme will be dropped following a consultation.
In a policy update released yesterday, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) said it would not be moving forward with the scheme, confirming several media reports that the plans were being dropped.
The labelling requirement, set out by the previous Conservative government to comply with the Windsor Framework, was set to come into force from today (1 October).
Defra added that it was committed to safeguarding the supermarket supply chain into Northern Ireland.
It also added that the ‘Not for EU’ labels could be revived in the future “if that is required to secure those supplies across the UK internal market.” the government announced that the next phase of the Northern Ireland Retail Movement Scheme, implemented as part of the Windsor Framework, will go ahead as planned from today.
The scheme will bring more dairy products within the scope of the labelling requirements for moving goods from Great Britain to Northern Ireland and will apply to businesses on both sides of the Irish Sea.