UK food and drink trade deficit hits £21.1bn, the largest since 2000

Britain’s trade deficit in food and drink has reached £21.1 billion, the largest since 2000, as exports slump and imports climb to near-record levels, according to new figures from the Food & Drink Federation analysing HMRC data.

UK food and drink export volumes fell 11.7% year on year in the first half of 2026 to four billion kilograms — the third-lowest total this century and only marginally above the level seen at the height of the Covid pandemic, the federation’s latest Trade Snapshot showed. In value terms exports stood at £12.4 billion, down 3.4% on the year. Imports, meanwhile, hit 19.1 billion kg, the second-highest first-half level on record.

The federation blamed ongoing post-Brexit border friction — with export values to the EU down 0.9%, including declines of 4.9% to Ireland and 4.6% to France — alongside the 10% US tariff, which cut food and drink export values to America by 16.5%, and Middle East conflict disruption, which pushed exports to the UAE down nearly a quarter. It also criticised the government’s decision to suspend tariffs on manufactured foods, saying it was “exacerbating an already widening trade gap”.

Karen Betts, the federation’s chief executive, called the figures a “wake-up call” for ministers, saying they raised “stark questions” about Britain’s food security “in a world beset by conflict and the ever-increasing impacts of climate change”.

Sources

• The Grocer, “Ongoing border friction weighing on food exports”, 24 Sept 2026: https://www.thegrocer.co.uk/news/ongoing-border-friction-weighing-on-food-exports/724042.article
• The Times, “UK’s dependence on foreign produce is ‘wake-up call’ for ministers”, 25 Sept 2026: https://www.thetimes.com/business/companies-markets/article/uks-dependence-on-foreign-produce-is-wake-up-call-for-ministers-2qnn59flh
• The Guardian, “UK food and drink trade deficit largest since 2000 at £21bn”, 24 Sept 2026
• Bloomberg, “UK Food Exports Slump as US Tariffs Hit Products Like Salmon”, 24 Sept 2026: https://news.bloomberglaw.com/international-trade/uk-food-exports-slump-as-us-tariffs-hit-products-like-salmon