British Border Checks: Concerns Grow Over ‘Drive-By’ Meat Imports

Recent reports have raised concerns over consignments of meat and animal product imports bypassing British border checks in what has been referred to as “drive-bys,” posing a significant risk of disease entering the country, according to MPs.

The Environmental, Food and Rural Affairs (Efra) committee in Parliament has released data indicating that a percentage of flagged consignments of meat and plant products, which were supposed to undergo checks, were not taken to the designated border control post at Sevington, located 22 miles from the port of Dover.

Data provided by the Environment Department (Defra) for three sample months revealed that in November 2025, 18 per cent of flagged consignments of animal products like meat and dairy did not make it to Sevington, despite being instructed to do so by digital systems upon arrival at Dover. This marked increase in “drive-bys” from eight per cent in August 2025 is raising alarms.

Risk of Disease Outbreak

The Efra committee has expressed serious concerns about the potential risks posed by limited checks on UK livestock and plants, warning that diseases such as African swine fever, foot and mouth, and the plant-harming Xylella bacteria are prevalent in Europe.

The committee highlighted the growing evidence indicating that criminal groups were exploiting the perceived inadequacy of checks at Dover to smuggle products into Britain that would not meet regulatory standards on the continent.

Alistair Carmichael, chairman of the committee, emphasized the urgent need for the British Government to address the shortcomings in the current system, stating, “Unchecked meat and plant products carrying potentially devastating diseases are being let in through the front door. The risks to our livestock and plants are grave and very real.”

Call for Action

The committee stressed the importance of making the Sevington system effective until a more robust system can be established with the EU. They also pointed out that a plant pilot program aimed at addressing non-compliance with border control post attendance deadlines had shown some success in improving data quality.

However, Mr. Carmichael criticized the government for not allocating sufficient resources to sustain or expand the pilot program to cover meat and dairy products, warning of the potential consequences of inaction. “How terribly short sighted that will look if another outbreak of foot and mouth arises from this farce,” he remarked.

A spokesperson from Defra responded to the concerns, stating, “Non-attendance at Sevington border control post is a breach of regulation and we expect the relevant authorities to follow up on any breaches of this.”

About the Author

Emily Beament is the Press Association’s environment correspondent.