“THE East Lothian plain is one of the largest areas of high-quality, high-yielding farmland in Scotland” – Fourth Statistical Account of East Lothian.

Now Brexit is ‘done’, spare a thought for the stewards of our rural idyll – our farmers. They too have had to deal with Covid. This comes on top of years of Brexit uncertainty for them. Their top-quality output is our biggest business sector, yet they could make no long-term planning, nor investment required could be done. As an example, lamb faced 40 per cent tariffs on exports had there been no deal.

Now the other Brexit shoe has dropped, there is relief across farming sectors. As few of our farms export directly, they are not faced with customs bureaucracy. Our fishermen are not so lucky. They need copious new paperwork for the 60 per cent they export and French customs have been delaying lorries by inspecting each load in detail.

Livestock may suffer the same fate. However, Jamie Wyllie of Ruchlaw, NFU Scotland pig committee chair, says local producers sell livestock mostly to co-op processors. Their difficulty is not Brexit-related but because a DEFRA-derived paper trail of documents is needed for onward sale and possible export.

Direct export of arable crops to the EU remains straightforward, but processed food export requires much documentation.

East Lothian arable farmers find a ready market locally in malt or the new Quaker mill at Cupar. Similarly, our varied crop of quality vegetables head for the big supermarkets. Major supplier East Lothian Produce therefore does not expect business to be affected, except in some seasonal export of Brussels sprouts to the Netherlands. Their main concern is sustaining their workforce, many of whom are EU nationals. Ending free flow of workers will make recruiting harder.

The worst impact is in an area where Scotland is a world leader, and our county’s soil makes it key producers: seed potatoes. For reasons that escape our farmers, the Brexit deal allows unfettered access of EU potatoes into the UK but restricts trade in the opposite direction. Unless resolved, our top-class producers will be forced to switch to other crops, at a loss to all concerned.

On your weekly shop, use outlets like the Community Carrot in Dunbar, supplied by the local farmers who steward our countryside. Even in supermarket fruit and veg sections, select what you buy by local origin. Some good news: supplies of neeps, tatties and haggis for Burns Night are unaffected by Brexit.