BREXIT IMPLICATIONS FOR AGRI-FOOD TRADE BETWEEN POLAND AND THE UK

Abstract

The article is a contribution to the discussion on the anticipated consequences of the United Kingdom’s withdrawal from the European Union for Poland’s trade relations with this country, with particular emphasis on the likely impacts of a hard or no-deal Brexit on Polish exporters. Its aim is to provide readers with an understanding of how agri-food flows between Poland and the UK (especially Poland’s exports) could be affected once the UK departs the EU. The question is important considering that, in recent years, the UK has been the second biggest importer and a net importer of agricultural and food products from Poland. The study is based on trade data from the UN Comtrade Database and Poland’s Central Statistical Office, and on tariff data from the UK’s Department for International Trade. Taking into account the possible imposition of customs duties announced thus far by the British government on the import of agri-food products from third countries in the event of a no-trade agreement with the EU, the introduction of additional non-tariff barriers, as well as increased transactional (friction) costs and complexity of doing business with foreign partners, a hard Brexit would have serious implications for Poland’s fast growing agri-food exports to the UK. It would even lead to a collapse of some Polish supplies, particularly of meat and dairy commodities, to Great Britain. The loss of two-way preferences in trade now arising from participation in the EU single market will undermine the competitiveness of Polish producers on UK’s market both against British producers and lower cost exporters from outside the EU.