AS this newspaper more or less predicted, the UK government has caved in to the EU in terms of policing Border controls for incoming produce. The upshot is that we have a free-for-all for products coming in to the UK – but a log jam of paperwork and bureaucracy going from these shores to elsewhere in Europe.

This is not acceptable and the industry is right to lobby in the strongest terms for a parity arrangement. It must be galling for Scotland's world class seed potato industry, for instance, to lose its entire EU business – which weighs in at 20,000 tonnes, or one-fifth of all our seed exports and with a value of £4.5m to our industry – and then see Dutch (mainly) imports waltz through our Border controls with a welcoming wave onwards (even were there a Border official to do so!).

You have to feel, also, for meat and shellfish producers losing time and money while petty officials on the other side of the English Channel – and even some on this side – decide whether to hold up a load until it has gone past its sell-by-date, to let it though, or even, as happened, to send it back from whence it came. It beggars belief that we cannot do the same to imports coming in to the UK, simply because we have not planned for such a scenario.

There's a feeling that this will never be resolved in anyone's favour other than 'them', while 'us' will have to put up pseudo rules and regulations for evermore. It is absurd that one day our seed potatoes comply with all EU phytosanitary rules, and then the next day they don't.

It's equally embarrassing that we cannot even export to our fellow UK citizens in Northern Ireland because of the bizarre NI Protocols, which deem them to instead remain citizens of the EU. For spud producers there, it will be a case of being forced to buy seed from sources that they would rather not – and with all the attendant disease risks associated with it.

There is a reason why we have a world reputation for seed potatoes – and that's because we're good at growing them and our climate is ideal for it. Our health status is up there amongst the best there is.

It's all very well Westminster saying that other markets are opening up, but clearly the EU obstructive degrading of our produce is being used as a bargaining chip by these supposedly 'new' markets to downgrade the price. Indeed, the anecdotal evidence is that our regular customers in the likes of Egypt have been exploiting the potential of this whole-scale.

NFUS has launched a full scale assault on trying to rectify this and given that there is an election in Scotland looming – for both Holyrood and local councils – it's up to all of farming to make some noise to your potential politicians. They need to be appraised of the impact of a one-way traffic system coming from the EU – and then that will allow you to vote accordingly.