Milk, butter, meat, fish and vegetables will start carrying a “not for EU” label across Britain and not just North Ireland, the government announced in its latest Brexit plan.

The new labelling rules, enacted under Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s Windsor Framework agreement, have caused confusion among businessmen who have demanded more explanation from the government.

Member of Parliament Sir Iain Duncan Smith slammed the new rules, which will come into effect from October.

The former Tory leader has been demanding Sunak to ditch the “ridiculous” regulations. “They should drop it. It will be seen as ludicrous,” Smith said.

What will the ‘not for EU label’ do?

Come October, nearly all British food products transported to North Ireland can pass through the ‘green lane’.

The green lane will ensure that goods sent from the UK do not have to undergo border checks for meeting the European Union’s standards, provided they carry the label.

As per the official website of the European Commission, the ‘not for EU label’ has been seen as an important tool to safeguard the EU Single Market.

The purpose of these labels is to keep consumers informed about the manufacturing country of such goods and let them know that they do not belong to the EU but are only for sale to consumers in North Ireland.

The European Commission and the UK government have agreed on requirements for the labelling on agri-food retail goods. The label will be placed at different levels starting from an individual, box, shelf signs and posters.

What is the Windsor Framework?

The Windsor Framework is an agreement between the EU and the UK government where both parties inked a deal to make major changes to North Ireland’s trade routes.

The three-month-old agreement stipulates that North Ireland will stay inside the EU’s single market for goods.

The concept of ‘green lanes’ and ‘red lanes’ is also a part of this framework. According to BBC, goods that stay in North Ireland will pass through the green lanes.

Using the green lanes would mean no more routine physical checks and minimal paperwork.

Meanwhile, red lanes will be used by products that are meant to be transported into Ireland.

How will it affect businesses?

Some politicians and businessmen are sceptical about the new regulations.

Former Cabinet minister David Jones said, “There is no good reason why food produced and sold in any part of the United Kingdom should be labelled “not for EU”, much less if it is sold in mainland Great Britain.”

Slamming the new rules as “nonsense,” Nigel Dodds, a member of the House of Lords, said, “This is a massive added cost and inconvenience on all British producers. These stickers have to go on every single individual prepackaged food item.”

Meanwhile, retailers say that the October deadline for the ‘no EU labels’ is a little tight especially when the government has not given any further details.

Andrew Opie, member of the British Retail Consortium said, “If we don’t see guidance soon and it is workable there will be problems in October for supply chains.”

“Everyone wants to make this work so it’s probably worth the UK having a discussion with the EU now about compliance rather than waiting until closer to October,” he added.

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