This week sees the introduction of new government policy on the control of EU produce entering the UK, with firms fearing delays, rising costs and the ability of border posts to cope
“Before Brexit, we could phone up on Monday and have the plants here by Wednesday – it was dead easy,” says Richard McKenna, managing director of Provender Nurseries, as he stands surrounded by trolleys holding hundreds of plants at its 8 hectare (20 acre) site in Swanley, Kent.
From its base in the garden of England, Provender is one of the country’s largest wholesale nurseries, selling up to 5,000 different lines of plants and trees to 11,000 businesses across the south-east. More than half are imported directly from countries in the EU. “We bring in product from across Europe – we have imported around €2.5m this year,” he says.
