The National Office of Animal Health is amongst founder members of the Agri-Brexit Coalition, a new group of eight agribusiness organisations and trade associations which aims to bring together expertise in this sector of UK agriculture as negotiations on Brexit progress.

The new group will focus on key issues in Brexit negotiations pertinent to the UK trading and supplying of goods, services, technology and advice to UK farmers. It aims to inform and influence UK governments to achieve a positive outcome to negotiations for UK Agriculture as well as the EU and the wider world.

“Whatever shape UK agriculture takes over the coming years, the industry and the nation will depend on higher efficiency and productivity along with successful relationships with other countries,” said coalition co-ordinator David Caffall, chief executive of the Agricultural Industries Federation.

“Members of this coalition are the principal means by which knowledge is transferred and technical advance implemented on-farm. This is a collective resource which we can offer to UK governments, providing a ‘one-stop shop’ of expertise.”

Dawn Howard, Chief Executive of NOAH, said: “We believe the new Agri-Brexit Coalitionit will provide a focal point for Government as the UK’s Brexit strategy is developed and we enter into negotiations on leaving the EU.

“There are many areas that need to be taken into account in relation to animal medicines to enable the UK to remain a global centre of excellence for animal health, and to support innovative product developments, with a regulatory model that assists both local and international trade.  We have our own stringent regulatory system, for example, and we need to make sure that this is set up to encourage innovation and does not impose undue regulatory burden on animal health companies.

“There is also much value in working with others. We have been in discussion with our life sciences colleagues, for example, at the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry, and there are other organisations, such as the veterinary profession, where we share much of mutual interest.

“Similarly, there are many areas we share with our Coalition colleagues: we all want to ensure a thriving, productive UK agricultural sector with good knowledge transfer and technical development on farms. By working together, we can pool resources and give government a combined entry point to expertise to discuss the way forward in this area.”