Afp, London

Britain will experience shortages of certain foods in the event of a “disastrous” no-deal Brexit, with “serious disruption” expected for months, the country’s food and drink lobby warned yesterday.

“The food sector is absolutely clear that a no-deal exit is a disastrous outcome for us, but we’ve never said that the country is going to starve,” Tim Rycroft, corporate affairs director at the Food and Drink Federation, told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme.

“There will be selective shortages and they will be to some extent random because it depends on which trucks get through,” he added.

Britain is due to leave the European Union on October 31, but there appears to be little prospect at the moment of a deal being reached to ensure the free-flow of goods after that date.

New Prime Minister Boris Johnson has vowed to take the country out, deal or no deal, which would mean trading with the EU according to World Trade Organization rules.