The BBC reports on Wilfred Emmanuel Jones, a British Devon-based farmer and founder of The Black Farmer line of meat products, including raw sausages.
Since he will no longer be allowed to export fresh sausages to the EU, he has decided to send them frozen instead.
“There’s a really big opportunity to do premium frozen sausages for the continent,” he explained. “One problem we have with sausages is that in this country at least, anything frozen is seen as down-market, not a premium product.”
The UK is the only country in Europe that makes and exports raw sausages. Other countries, as well as the US, all produce pre-cooked sausages, as they have a longer shelf life than raw ones, said Mr Jones.
But rather than give up on British traditions and make pre-cooked sausages, he thinks that sausage makers need to bring in freezing equipment.
“I think we should have a British sausage mark, so if you’re going to be selling sausages to any part of the world, it’s unique to any of the sausages around the world,” he added.
Raw sausages and other minced meats can no longer be exported to the EU from 1 January, according to new rules.
The guidance is part of the post-Brexit trade deal agreed between the UK and the EU last week.
Meat industry bodies attended a conference call with ministers on Tuesday to seek clarification about the issue.
The British Meat Processors Association said it was one of several issues causing concern.
New EU rules on exports dictate that from 1 January, the following animal products cannot be exported into the EU:
- Chilled minced red meat
- Chilled meat preparations (for example, raw sausages)
- Minced meat (poultry)
- Poultry and ratite or game bird mechanically-separated meat
- Raw milk from cows infected with Bovine Tuberculosis (TB)
- Ungraded eggs
- Composite products containing dairy products made from unpasteurised milk (for example, a ready meal topped with unpasteurised cheese)
