TWO of Victoria's few remaining yabby growers are taking VCAT action against State Government agency Primesafe.
They claim the state's yabby industry has been decimated by draconian Primesafe requirements.
A decade ago there were more than 100 yabby growers in Victoria but most yabbies sold here now are from interstate.
The growers have blasted the Government's "inaction", claiming it failed to keep promises and capitulated to bureaucrats.
Edenhope lamb producer and yabby farmer Trevor Domaschenz said he "feels betrayed by the Liberal-National Coalition".
"For eight years they used my name in papers and in Parliament; in Government they have done nothing, in fact gone backwards," Mr Domaschenz said.
On Monday he took his case to VCAT, which ordered compulsory mediation next month.
Mr Domaschenz claimed Primesafe's refusal of his application last year for an Aquaculture Seafood License Business was unfounded.
He said he used industry best practice methods approved by Australian Quarantine and Inspection Service when storing his yabbies, instead of purging as required by Primesafe.
Mr Domaschenz said Primesafe failed to provide clear indications of what was required and had had several opportunities where it could have notified him that his proposed practices were non-compliant before refusing his licence.
He said South Australian producers "don't have this rubbish" and "neither do growers in NSW who flood our markets".
Another yabby producer, Stephen Chara, of Otway Yabbies, will have his case heard in May.
He will argue Primesafe did not honour its commitment to the Victorian Yabby Producers Manual code of practice and falsely rejected his application based on its purging requirement, which he claimed was not a valid food safety issue.
"Who runs the state of Victoria, bureaucrats or politicians? I voted for a politician to represent me, not a bureaucrat," Mr Chara said.
A spokeswoman for Agriculture Minister Peter Walsh said she would not comment while the matters were before VCAT.
