The Victorian Government’s plan to dismantle Dairy Food Safety Victoria and replace it with a broader food safety regulator has ignited strong backlash from the dairy industry.
Safe Food Victoria is a new statutory authority that will merge several food regulators under one body by 2026.
Victorian Agriculture Minister Ros Spence and Health Minister Mary-Anne Thomas said the move would “cut red tape” and streamline a system currently governed by four separate laws and multiple regulators.
The United Dairyfarmers of Victoria and Australian Dairy Farmers have condemned the decision, warning it risks compromising safety and increasing costs.
UDV president Bernie Free said Dairy Food Safety Victoria underpinned Victoria’s $2.5 billion dairy industry and 73 per cent share of national dairy exports.
“Replacing a proven, cost-neutral, specialist regulator with a one-size-fits-all bureaucracy just won’t work,” Mr Free said.
“Safety must not be compromised, and costs must not be increased.”
ADF president Ben Bennett echoed the concerns, describing the government’s consultation process as “tokenistic” and the reform as a “solution in search of a problem”.
He said dismantling DFSV could undermine technical expertise developed in Victoria, home to most of Australia’s milk production.
“Given we’ve not seen a business case for the transition to Food Safety Victoria, and nobody can outline any grounds for improvement at DFSV, we see this as a clear and blatant cash grab by the debt-stricken Victorian Government,” Mr Bennett said.
“DFSV doesn’t cost taxpayers anything — it’s funded by farmers.”
The government has rejected claims the reforms will erode standards.
It said all staff, expertise and cost-recovery models would transfer to Safe Food Victoria, ensuring no redundancies or loss of specialist knowledge.
Officials argue that a consolidated regulator will give businesses simpler processes, more consistency and faster approvals, while still maintaining high safety standards.
“This consultation phase seeks the views and ideas of Victorians to inform the new regulator’s focus and operating approach,” Ms Spence said.
“Safe Food Victoria will provide simpler processes and greater consistency for Victorian food businesses, while maintaining the excellent standards and expertise from existing regulators.
“Most states and our close neighbours, such as New Zealand, successfully operate under similar consolidated models.”
Victorians are being invited to contribute to the consultation process via engage.vic.gov.au/foodsafety