UK food and drink exports slump to decade low as costs bite

British food and drink exports fell 8.9% in volume terms in the first quarter of 2026, sliding to their weakest level in a decade if the pandemic trough is excluded. The Food and Drink Federation said the drop showed UK producers were losing ground to global rivals as higher domestic costs and tougher trade conditions squeezed margins.

The decline was visible in money terms as well. First-quarter export value fell 4.8% to £5.7 billion, while imports rose 2.6% to £16.3 billion. Shipments to the European Union fell 6.9% in volume terms. Imports from the EU slipped only slightly. Exports to the United States fell 27.9% in value, reflecting extra tariffs imposed in 2025, while imports from the US rose 11.5%.

In its 2025 trade snapshot, published on March 31, 2026, the federation said UK food and drink export value still reached a record £25.6 billion last year, but export volumes were 27% lower than in 2019 overall. EU food export volumes were nearly a third below 2019 levels. Chocolate, biscuits and breakfast cereals were among the hardest-hit categories over the past five years.

Production costs in the UK, from energy to employment, are higher than in competitor economies, and regulation is adding more pressure. Proposed UK tariff suspensions on items including chocolate, biscuits and jams could give rivals another edge.

Business confidence among food manufacturers fell to -64% in the first quarter, the lowest since the energy crisis that followed Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Eighty-two percent of manufacturers said they expect to raise prices because of energy-price rises driven by global supply-chain disruption, and 69% want government support on energy costs. Confidence for the second quarter stood at -51%. A UK-EU sanitary and phytosanitary agreement, due in mid-2027, could lift UK-EU exports by almost a quarter.