Britain's post-Brexit trade talks with Canada break down as they disagree over beef and cheese
ABC News
The British government has called off post-Brexit trade talks with Canada after discussions broke down over disagreements related to the import and export of beef and cheese
LONDON -- The British government has called off post-Brexit trade talks with Canada after discussions broke down over disagreements related to the import and export of beef and cheese.
The two countries have been negotiating a new trade deal over the past two years since Britain fully left the European Union. Trade between the two has largely continued under the same deal that was originally brokered when Britain was a member of the bloc.
In a statement late Thursday, the U.K. government said it “remains open” to restarting talks in the future but that there was no progress so far. Annual trade between the two countries is valued at around 26 billion pounds ($33 billion).
Over time as the discussions pushed ahead, Canadian negotiators came under mounting pressure from their beef industry and domestic cheesemakers.
The beef industry wanted access to the United Kingdom for its hormone-fed beef while the cheesemakers warned about the economic impact of tariff-free cheese from Britain, primarily cheddar. Tariff-free cheese exports from Britain ended at the end of 2023.
