Struggles to adapt to post-Brexit regulations are taking a toll on goods movement, is there a solution? 

Christmas could look quite different this year as the retail industry struggles to adapt to post-Brexit regulations, meaning a shortage of seasonal essentials. New legislation has changed the way agri-food products move between the UK and the EU, which has drastically affected the Just-In-Time operations of UK retailers. The industry is struggling to adapt to the change whilst simultaneously preparing itself for further disruption to come in 2022, taking away from its primary focus of selling goods.  

The UK government has extended easements and moved deadlines for change several times to provide businesses time to prepare, but why is it proving so difficult for the industry to adapt and is there anything that can be done to simplify the process? 

The challenges are unfortunately multifaceted; concerns vary from driver shortages, operational upheaval and the negative effect on profit, to the paper-based and bureaucratic process for creating and submitting new documentation. The industry is paralysed by a lack of time; the world will not wait for products while potential solutions are tested and businesses adjust, they must run in parallel with current operations, which is proving difficult while relying on outdated physical processes. 

One of the areas affected is the creation of Export Health Certificates (EHCs) for the movement of Sanitary and Phytosanitary goods. Pre-Brexit, these documents were not required for EU to GB movement, businesses are therefore having to set up their operations to create these certifications, for their EU goods, for the first time since 1973. Gathering the data to complete an EHC involves the entire supply chain and innumerable paper forms; the process is further complicated by the need to consolidate the large amount of data required for complex loads with various products. With the industry having to re-route resources to compile and submit paperwork and relying heavily on the manual input of data, the risk of human error is high. The result is rejected documentation that causes severe delays to perishable goods, increased wait times at the border as well as tariff penalties and fines for late deliveries. 

Some larger businesses have sought to develop internal digital systems in a bid to make the new legislation more manageable. However, developing such software internally has costs that easily spiral into the millions, with little or no guarantee that the result will be a viable piece of technology, as many of these organisations have found. An industry wide platform would be the best solution to ease the burden, facilitating the use of single sets of master data throughout the process, input by actors from across the supply chain, to eliminate the risk of error. 

Moving to a digital format would also limit the operational disruption that is cause for concern for so many businesses by digitising and streamlining current practices rather than creating new ones. 

An ideal future would have global governments move to a system where they accept digital certificates at the border; while that may be something to lobby for, a digital platform which simplifies the movement of goods already exists, created, tested and deployed by Physical2Digital (P2D). 

The P2D platform was created to move the entire supply chain of a business into a digital space, allowing access to all the required information for the creation of an EHC, customs declaration or Vehicle Load Manifest in a single window. Deployed with minimal disruption to operations, the P2D platform automates the creation of EHCs for goods movement into EU countries, taking the process from hours to minutes and providing a digital document for sign off by an Official Vet or Certifying Officer. The customs system enables the automated creation and submittal of declarations, with P&R and Commodity code enrichment to simplify the EU movement process. The platform also provides end-to-end tracking for both the vehicle and the goods within with proof of destination, enabling businesses providing goods to Northern Ireland to demonstrate that their product has been delivered to an NI address. 

The movement onto a digital platform has enabled many industries to adapt to change while also futureproofing their operations; it may be time that the retail industry joined the charge. As things progress and the environment continues to shift, for example the move from CHIEF, HMRC’s customs platform to CDS in 2023, it will become imperative that businesses are ready to prevent further disruption.  

Are you prepared?