February 2/Plymouth, U.K./Western Morning News -- Dairy farmers in the Westcountry may look forward to fewer food safety inspections if their farms qualify for special hygiene status -- which almost all do.

More than five years of lobbying efforts by the National Farmers' Union (NFU) look due to culminate in a victory for dairy producers, as the Food Standards Agency (FSA) launches its consultation on proposals to reduce dairy hygiene inspections to one in 10 years on farm-assured dairy holdings. Under the proposed changes, which are out for consultation until March, official animal health dairy hygiene inspections on Red Tractor-assured dairy farms will be reduced from once every two years to once in 10 years -- representing a 90% overall reduction.