Dairy farmers in Northern Ireland are 'strongly opposed' to Red Tractor's plans to introduce unannounced inspections, a farming union says.
Red Tractor’s new risk-based approach to farm inspections looks to improve the integrity of the assurance scheme.
Announced last year, it said it believes that changes are a 'vital component' in maintaining the trust of consumers and promoting high standards in food and farming.
But the Ulster Farmers' Union (UFU) said there is an 'unjust view' that Northern Irish dairy farms struggle to meet the same standards as farms in Britain.
UFU deputy president, Victor Chestnutt has now called for 'uniformity' across the UK regions when it comes to inspections.
“Red Tractor have heard first-hand the concerns of grassroots dairy farmers in Northern Ireland. We now want to work with them to see these issues addressed,” he said.
“Farmers largely support the concept of a farm quality assurance scheme but it must work for all parties. Unfortunately, many aspects of the new risk-based approach are problematic for farmers.”
The UFU said dairy farmers are 'frustrated' with Red Tractor’s inspection process and that concerns raised with the farm quality assurance body have 'not been addressed to date'.
The new, tougher regime was in development last year and began in November 2018 for full roll-out across all farms this year.
Jim Moseley, CEO, Red Tractor Assurance said: “We are constantly strengthening our standards in line with scientific advances and consumer demand.
“We know shoppers are increasingly looking for more informed choice and simple signposts to traceable, safe and responsibly produced food, which is why we are looking to extend the remit of Red Tractor. Increasing confidence in Red Tractor and the entire UK food industry is vital, particularly as we approach Brexit.”
