The requirements for additional forms, customs charges, and health safety checks for goods crossing Britain's border are especially challenging for businesses that transport small quantities. This is true for specialist food importers who purchase from small suppliers across Europe, contributing to London's reputation as a top city for dining. Yannos Hadjiioannou, owner of Maltby & Greek, has faced difficulties in discovering and importing unique products due to these new regulations. Despite this, the shop continues to offer rare Greek products such as goat-milk butter, Mastelo cheese, mountain tea, and Gigantes beans from Feneos. Obtaining these items has become more complex in recent weeks. After a delay of one year, Britain began enforcing stricter customs requirements for goods coming from the European Union on January 1. In 2020, half of all imports into the country came from the EU. Now, all goods must be accompanied by customs declarations, whereas last year British importers could delay reporting by up to six months. Additionally, businesses importing animal and plant products, such as most food, must notify the government of shipments in advance. The introduction of these new rules at the border has been relatively smooth. DFDS, a Danish logistics company that operates ferry services to Britain, mentioned that some customers made errors on paperwork, resulting in delays of food shipments. A backlog from the previous day caused shipments from the Netherlands to be paused temporarily. Torben Carlsen, the CEO of DFDS, stated that everyone involved tried to learn from the mistakes made a year ago. With the introduction of customs rules by the European Union following Brexit, issues such as delivery delays, trucking companies ceasing services to Ireland, and food spoilage in ports arose immediately. It took over a month to resolve most of these problems. Britain faced financial constraints due to import issues this year. Approximately 25% of the nation's food is brought in from the European Union, with this number significantly increasing during the winter for fresh produce. However, there are obstacles beyond the border. Some UK companies are absorbing the export expenses of their European partners to retain them as suppliers, while others are cutting back on imports, leading to fewer options for consumers. Other people are also limiting their purchases to buying in large quantities and are choosing not to experiment with new products. The decrease in imports was evident even before the new import regulations were put in place. Food and drink imports dropped by approximately 11% in the first nine months of 2021 compared to 2019, according to the Food and Drink Federation. Despite maintaining normal business operations after the UK's departure from the EU's customs union at the beginning of 2021, Hadjiioannou stated that within six months, the added customs expenses and resulting price hikes became too costly. He no longer receives weekly shipments of anthotyro, a soft fresh sheep's milk cheese from Crete, and traditionally strained sheep or goat yogurt, causing these popular products to frequently be out of stock. Sausages from Crete are now frozen instead of fresh in order to be sent in larger, less frequent deliveries. The perishable products, especially those that were small in volume but important to many restaurants and delis, have been significantly impacted. The main issue caused by Brexit has been the loss of flexibility. Maltby & Greek's warehouse is located at Spa Terminus, a row of railway arches that houses food producers, wholesalers, and wine importers. During this time of year, the fresh produce available at markets consists of Sicilian citrus, Italian leafy greens, and French root vegetables. Rachel Sills, who sells cheese from Switzerland and the Netherlands at Maltby & Greek, has experience exporting from Switzerland which helped ease the impact of Brexit's trade rules. However, she is still facing additional costs. Sills purchases cheese from four small producers in the Netherlands, some of whom do not even have email addresses. These producers now need an Economic Operator's Registration and Identification number, customs agents to handle export and tax paperwork, and they must provide more detailed invoices with tariff codes. Sills mentioned that she had covered the additional expenses for export clearances for the cheesemakers. She recently managed to consolidate the orders and pay only 65 euros ($74.50) for each invoice, in addition to her own import fees. She noted that the cheesemakers have not yet started paying for the actual costs of the export charges, as she has been covering them herself. Sills stated that while the paperwork and costs are not overly burdensome, they can become overwhelming for companies with numerous suppliers. This is particularly true for those purchasing small volumes. So far, Brexit has resulted in additional costs for businesses. According to trade policy expert David Henig, there are no longer extreme shortages, but the impact will be gradual and ongoing. The extra costs will harm the British economy, with forecasts predicting a 4% decrease in GDP. Consumers may have fewer options and companies may be less inclined to invest in Britain. Franco Fubini, the founder of Natoora, stated that the company has become less focused on the U.K. compared to a few years ago. Natoora, which was established in London in 2004, now sources fresh produce from numerous small farms in Europe and North America for approximately 1,600 restaurants globally as well as stores such as Selfridges and Whole Foods in the United States. The company has restructured its internal processes so that the British division no longer directly imports goods from farms in Italy, France, Spain, and Greece. Instead, additional staff were hired in Paris and Milan to purchase the produce for the London office. This consolidation has resulted in a single invoice, saving costs on transportation and customs. Despite finding a solution, Fubini mentioned that Brexit has negatively impacted Britain's global image, prompting him to reassess the future of his company. He expressed doubt about continuing to invest in the U.K for the first time in 15 or 16 years when Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced the new trade deal with the European Union on Christmas Eve 2020. The deal was expected to increase business with European partners, but in reality, it has made it more difficult. Brexit was intended to free Britain from EU bureaucracy, but instead has created new challenges for businesses. Supporters of Brexit have become frustrated by the slow realization of its promised benefits. Elena Deminska, who runs a fresh produce market, believes Brexit could be an opportunity for British farmers to produce more food that is currently imported from the EU. The country has the suitable climate for growing winter lettuce, broccoli raab, and apricots with some effort, according to Deminska. She criticizes the inflexibility of farmers and outsourced her customs work to an external company four years ago. Despite this foresight, she is frustrated by the additional paperwork caused by Brexit, stating that it is unhelpful and adds to the already burdensome amount of paperwork. She acknowledges that there are more challenges ahead for businesses like hers. Starting in July, food imports will require health certificates signed by European Union inspectors, and may undergo random checks at the border. These adjustments are expected to increase complexity and expenses, causing disruption.