British soil will be banned from the EU from 2021.

Strict biosecurity rules mean that soil from third countries is banned from crossing EU borders and when the Brexit transition period comes to an end in January, Britain will be classed as a third country.

This means that the growing medium for plants, flowers, cuttings, roots and trees imported from Britain cannot consist of soil from 1 January.

Secondhand British machinery must be fully free from soil and have a valid phytosanitary certificate before entering the EU. The rules won’t apply to Northern Ireland under the Northern Ireland Protocol.

Potatoes

British seed and ware potatoes will also be banned in the EU until such time as the UK’s application for third-country equivalence is accepted by the European Commission.

This process won’t start until a trade deal is secured. Ireland imported 7,330t and 4,421t of seed potatoes from Britain in 2019 and 2020, respectively. Growers are now attempting to secure their 2021 seed before the January deadline.