Whitstable's world famous oyster export industry could be on the rocks if a post-Brexit row is not swiftly resolved.

It follows an EU diktat that live shellfish from the UK should be permanently banned from export into Europe.

Now the Department of for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) is said to be in urgent talks with Brussels bureaucrats to find a solution.

Whitstable oyster producers say any long-term ban would spell disaster for the industry, which is already suffering from the Covid-19 lockdown with a collapse in demand because restaurants are closed.

James Green, of the Whitstable Oyster Company, says half his produce - about 100 tonnes - is exported to France in a normal year.

"There's no doubt that if this ban continues then it will be a disaster for us and I will be left trying to shift an extra 100 tonnes of oysters in the UK," he said.

"If you leave them to grow, they just get too big and are not marketable.

"We are suffering a double whammy because the Covid lockdown has already decimated demand.

"I know Defra has been trying to sort it but apparently it's like talking to a brick wall.

"But I shall be emailing our MP Rosie Duffield to get her to take up our plight with the government."

Prior to Brexit, thousands of tonnes of live shellfish caught by British fishers were shipped to the continent, where they would then be processed.

PoliticsHome reported last month that an EU ban on exporting wild shellfish caught in UK waters and not ready for human consumption - known collectively as live bivalve molluscs (LBMs) - was due to expire on April 21, when Brussels implements new animal health legislation.

But a European Commission official wrote to the British shellfish industry last week saying that under its new legislation, the ban on farmed shellfish would actually remain in place indefinitely.

If permanent, it would be a huge blow to Seasalter Shellfish, which also exports oysters to France.

A spokesman for the company said: "We are the forgotten industry in all this. It should have been sorted out ages ago and I blame Defra's incompetence."

A government source confirmed that UK officials were aware of the EU’s new stance, with a Defra spokesman telling PoliticsHome: "We will continue to raise the issue of live bivalve molluscs not ready for human consumption with the EU, to ensure the trade can continue securely."

But Graham West, of West Whelks, called it a "bloody nightmare" for fishermen and accused the EU of being obstructive.

"Frankly, the industry has suffered enough. I've sold just 25 oysters since Christmas."

"We export our whelks to Ireland but are having problems with bureaucracy," he said.

"Frankly, the industry has suffered enough. I've sold just 25 oysters since Christmas.

"And remember the Whitstable Oyster Festival was cancelled, when I would normally sell more than 25,000."

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