Welsh veterinary surgeons are receiving government training to provide Export Health Certificates if the UK leaves the EU with 'no deal'.

New Welsh government funding is helping the food and farming sector to prepare for Brexit by supporting the training of veterinary surgeons required for them to certify produce of animal origin exported from Wales to the EU.

If the UK crashes out of the European Union without a deal, Export Health Certificates (EHC) will be required to export produce of animal origin from Wales to the EU.

This will result in a significant increase in the need for EHC certification capability and capacity in Wales.

£96,000 from the £50 million EU Transition fund was announced last September to support the need for Export Health Certification.

Veterinary surgeons certifying EHCs must receive specific training and authorisation. Usually the training is paid for by the veterinarian undertaking the course, which represents a disincentive to participate.

For this reason a scheme to support the additional training required for a minimum of 80 Veterinary surgeons from across Wales was launched on 22 January.

The scheme is being administered by the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) on behalf of the Welsh government and in collaboration with Veterinary Delivery Partners Iechyd Da and Menter a Busnes.

Lesley Griffiths, Wales' Minister for Rural Affairs, said: “Veterinary surgeons have already begun receiving extra training to provide Export Health Certificates and this funding is helping to address the significant risk to the export of animal produce from Wales post-Brexit.

“It is possible– if a no deal is taken off the table this extra capacity will not be required but we must prepare for all eventualities. However, the training would not have been wasted as the skills are transferable and would strengthen the important certification role of the veterinary profession in Wales."

She added: “We have always been clear a no deal Brexit is not an option for Wales’ food industry. Crashing out of the European Union could decimate economies and must be avoided at all costs. Our preference would be a ‘softer’ Brexit – one that allows us to stay in a customs union and a single market.”