Garden centre owner struggling due to Brexit issues

10 February 2021

GARDEN centre owners are experiencing more issues as a result of Brexit and the Irish Sea border, it has emerged this week.

The impact of new regulations — described as the most significant change to trading in decades — is impacting on many businesses who can no longer receive a range of plants from their UK suppliers.

Concern has also been voiced that the change in the trading landscape extends to securing products from mainland suppliers, including seeds, garden furniture and wooden handled tools such as spades, forks and rakes.

Some garden centre owners have described the situation as a “complete nightmare” that will affect many businesses.

Beth Lunney, from the Saintfield Garden Centre, recently revealed that her longstanding supplier of azaleas and rhododendrons in the UK told her that he was not going to be able to get the delivery to Saintfield, explaining that it was because of the possibility that there could be soil in the pots.

The UK supplier had correctly interpreted the new rules which apply on trade in plants between Great Britain and Northern Ireland which is still in the EU’s plant health system and therefore must apply EU rules on products entering from Great Britain.

Plants now need a plant health certificate to enter the country, but some products are completely banned, including soil as it can carry pests and diseases, with increasing fears that there maybe even more problems ahead.

The Saintfield businesswoman said while she buys plants from the Republic of Ireland and Holland, these countries do not have the varieties, quality or quantity that Saintfield Garden Centre requires.

She also confirmed that she has written to a number of MLAs and MPs outlining her concern, explaining that that another issue has now arisen in relation to seeds normally sourced from one of the UK’s leading suppliers.

“Like many garden centres, we purchased quite a number of seeds in December ahead of the new regulations following Brexit as we had a fair idea of what was coming down the line in January,” she explained.

“We bought extra seeds and also purchased our seed potatoes early as the EU has expressed concern about seed potatoes coming into Northern Ireland for some reason which will no doubt create major issues for some farmers. At the moment, all varieties of potato seeds are not currently available across the province.”

In relation to the issue with seeds, Beth said Saintfield Garden Centre received an email from Suttons confirming that they are not able to provide a range of products, including tomato, onion, leek, asparagus, beetroot, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, cucumber, carrot lettuce, parsley, melon runner bean, spinach and sweetcorn.

Beth, who has written to Prime Minister Michael Gove and cabinet minister Michael Gove expressing concern about the new trading regulations, said representatives from the Horticulture Trades Association were due to met with Stormont’s agriculture and economy ministers last week.

“Many in the garden centre business hope that we will be able to reopen or, failing that, provide a click and collect service which would be very easy to do,” she continued.

“We are approaching the most busiest time for garden centres and a huge chunk of our business takes place over the coming months. The fact we remain closed and face issues in relation to securing the plants, seeds and equipment that we need is a major worry.”

Beth added: “The plants that we source from the UK mainland are grown in exactly the same way in the EU and we fail to see what the issue is. Where are people going to get their plants and seeds from? The situation is really worrying for everyone in the horticulture industry.

“You simply couldn’t make up what is happening. It is really unbelievable.”

Meanwhile, the politician who has taken temporary charge at the helm of the Department for Agriculture said he is keen to quickly get to grips with the issues facing both it and the industry, not least the implications of EU exit and the impacts of the Northern Ireland Protocol.

Gordon Lyons MLA said he will “consider all options and pursue all avenues” to mitigate against the societal and economic consequences of the Protocol and the barriers it is causing to trade.

He continued: “I am acutely aware of the devastating impact that Covid-19 has had on the agri-food, fisheries, rural and environmental sectors and intend to focus on assisting those sectors to recover and remain sustainable in the long term.

“I would also like to pay tribute in particular to the agri-food sector and the role it has played throughout this crisis and keeping food moving. The sector is vital to our economy and we must continue to support it.”

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