The Ornamental Aquatic Trade Association (OATA) is urging retailers to get in touch if they think they may be impacted by changes to aquatic livestock import rules following Brexit.
The Association says there is a lot of advice coming from the Government currently about the changing rules of trade between the UK and Europe, and it is being constantly updated.
Many aquatic retailers in England and Wales will not be hugely affected, as most importing issues should be managed by the companies that bring fish and invertebrates into the country. In addition, most livestock doesn’t come directly from Europe but from other parts of the world and so this trade would not be directly affected by the UK’s exit from the European Union.
However, Oata’s Dominic Whitmee said: “We know that some retailers do import livestock direct by travelling to the European Union and bringing fish back themselves. If this is the case then you must familiarise yourself with the new requirements.
“We know already from small member businesses this is proving confusing so we are trying to pull together information that will help and we would urge any retailers who find themselves in this position to email OATA with any queries and we will try to get answers – please email [email protected].
Another issue that could affect businesses is the changing requirement around the CE mark on products, which is being replaced by a UK mark. There are a number of deadlines around this so retailers will need to familiarise themselves with these and be careful to talk to suppliers about this issue.
There will also be concerns around veterinary medicines, which again all businesses will need to make sure they comply with.
The Government is constantly updating its guidance so please check our ‘Leaving the EU’ hub for links to all the latest advice. https://ornamentalfish.org/what-we-do/represent-the-industry/europe/
