UK food exports fall to decade low, says FDF

LONDON, June 26 (Reuters) - British food and drink exports fell 8.9% year-on-year in volume terms in the first quarter of 2026, dropping to their lowest level in a decade, excluding the height of the COVID pandemic, the industry's lobby said on Friday.

The Food and Drink Federation, which represents over 12,000 businesses, said UK manufacturers are losing ground to global competitors and urged the government to prioritise a competitive business environment and help companies benefit from global trade agreements.

• In value terms first-quarter food and drink exports fell 4.8% year-on-year to £5.7 billion ($7.5 billion), the FDF said.

• Food and drink imports in value terms rose 2.6% to £16.3 billion.

• Exports to the EU fell 6.9% in volume terms, reflecting the added cost and complexity of trading since Brexit.

• Imports from the EU fell 1.0% in volume terms.

• Exports to the U.S. fell 27.9% in value terms, showing the impact of additional tariffs imposed by the U.S. in 2025.

• Imports from the U.S. rose 11.5% in value terms.

• The FDF warned the UK government’s proposed tariff suspensions on products like chocolate, biscuits and jams "risk making a bad situation worse".

• It warned the costs of producing food and drink in the UK, from energy to employment, are higher than competitor economies, while increased regulation adds to these.($1 = 0.7602 pounds)

(Reporting by James Davey; Editing by Joe Bavier)