The European Union has backed down in Brexit reset negotiations to give UK companies time to adapt to any new food and drink deal – and avoid a “cliff edge” in costs.

The two sides are negotiating a deal for the UK to align with EU animal, plant and health (SPS) laws to allow easier cross-border trade in food and drink, which British ministers have said will bring down supermarket shop prices.

Ministers have been urged to negotiate transition periods to allow farmers, growers and food and drink firms time to adapt to some aspects of EU law rather than making a cliff-edge switch.

There have been warnings that an immediate change could cost British businesses hundreds of millions of pounds.

But The i Paper reported in May that Brussels was rebuffing what they saw as attempts from London to take an item-by-item, or “cherry-picking”, approach to alignment with EU law. This is required by the deal to ensure seamless cross-border food and drink trade.

However, EU opposition to transition periods has now been dropped.

Transition periods ‘discussed ahead of UK-EU summit’

Two EU sources told The i Paper that an easing of rules is being discussed as negotiators try and thrash out a deal in time for a UK-EU summit in Brussels this year.

Both sides are believed to be aiming for November to sign off on a trio of agreements on food and drink trade, youth mobility and carbon markets.

reported on Friday that the UK had obtained a carve-out allowing it to continue with gene editing of crops in a temporary exemption from EU law.

But there has been a push for transition periods in a number of other areas, including on pesticides.

In January, reported warnings that an immediate alignment would make British oats used in cereals, snack bars, meatballs and veggie burgers banned for sale in the EU, because UK farmers have been able to use pesticides not yet approved by Brussels in the growing process.

There have also been calls for transition periods to allow long shelf-life products manufactured before the deal’s regulations come into force to be sold in the EU.

British industry representatives have previously warned that a “cliff edge” of immediate alignment could cost businesses between £500m and £810m a year as UK and EU law has diverged since Brexit.

“We are looking at all of these issues,” an EU source said.

The trickiest aspect of the talks remains on youth mobility, with the UK and EU still apart on whether European students should pay lower tuition fees at British universities, and on how many visas should be granted to under-30s in the scheme.

The UK has proposed a 50,000 cap on visas, but the EU has asked for 150,000, with negotiations continuing.