Sainsburys Says Brexit Disruption Could Leave Food Rotting at Border

The Chief Executive of Sainsburys Mike Coupe has warned that food could be left rotting at the border if supply chains are disrupted by customs checks once Britain leaves the European Union.

He warns that any new controls on imports and exports of food would increase costs and transport times, making it harder to get fresh items to customers.

"If you take our fresh produce supply chains, for example, we put things on a lorry in Spain and it will arrive in a distribution centre somewhere in England, and it won't have gone through any border checks," he said.

"Anything that encumbers that has two effects: it adds cost, and it also has a detrimental effect on freshness - if you're shipping fresh produce from a long distance, even a few hours of delay can make a material impact."

This will also affect British fresh food producers supplying stores in the Republic of Ireland where many British retailers have a large presence.

Industry body the British Retail Consortium warned last week that British shoppers could face higher prices and less choice unless Britain and the EU can agree how to handle issues such as border checks, haulage and food safety after Brexit.