The Law of People's Republic of China (PRC) Farmers' Specialized Cooperatives is the first law to standardize and develop farmers' specialized cooperative economic organizations in China after 1949, and it is also the first time to promote farmers' economic mutual assistance and cooperation by legislation after 1978 implemented household contract management. The legislative purpose of this law is to support and guide the development of farmers' professional cooperatives, standardize the organization and behavior of farmers' professional cooperatives, protect the legitimate rights and interests of agricultural cooperatives and their members, and promote the development of agriculture and rural economy.
First, the difference between farmers' professional cooperatives and other market entities.
Farmers' professional cooperatives are not only different from corporate legal persons such as companies, but also different from social organizations that do not engage in profit-making business activities. As a special enterprise form, farmers' professional cooperatives have many differences from the original market players, which are as follows:
First, the purpose of establishment is different. Farmers' professional cooperative economic organizations aim at serving their members and seeking the common interests of all members, not for profit; Enterprise as a legal person is a profit-making economic organization.
Second, farmers are the main members of farmers' professional cooperatives; However, companies, partnerships and sole proprietorships do not make special provisions on the identity of investors.
Third, the clients are different. Farmers' professional cooperatives are mainly service members, providing pre-,mid-and post-natal services such as technology, information, purchase of production materials and sales, processing, transportation and storage of agricultural products; And there is no so-called back office in general enterprises.
Fourth, the property relationship is different. The property of farmers' professional cooperatives should be quantified one by one.
Person, credited to the member account; Generally speaking, as an enterprise legal person, the capital contribution of shareholders constitutes the property of the legal person, and the property of the legal person is not quantified in the name of shareholders.
Fifth, the exit mechanism has different effects on enterprise assets. Members of farmers' professional cooperatives are free to join and quit voluntarily. When a member quits, he can take away the capital contribution made when he joined and the share of property formed by the provident fund credited to his member account; However, the shareholders of an enterprise as a legal person can only withdraw in the form of transferring shares (there are special provisions for capital reduction, such as paying off debts or providing guarantees), and this withdrawal will generally not lead to the reduction of the assets of an enterprise as a legal person.
Sixth, the members of farmers' professional cooperatives have equal status and implement democratic management; The general company is a decision-making mechanism based on the shares held by shareholders.
Seventh, the profit distribution is different. The surplus of farmers' professional cooperatives is mainly returned in proportion to the transaction volume between members and farmers' professional cooperatives, and the principle of "limited capital return" is implemented. The basis of surplus distribution is that members use the services provided by cooperatives, that is, "returning surplus according to patronage".
Second, the service requirements of farmers' professional cooperatives (business scope)
It is precisely because farmers' professional cooperatives are different from other market entities in the above seven points that the second paragraph of the Farmers' Professional Cooperatives Law stipulates the service objects and service contents of farmers' professional cooperatives: "Farmers' professional cooperatives take their members as the main service objects and provide services such as the purchase of agricultural production materials, the sale, processing, transportation and storage of agricultural products, and technology and information related to agricultural production and operation. "
(1) Farmers' professional cooperatives should mainly serve their members. As an economic organization, farmers' professional cooperatives should naturally carry out business activities. However, farmers' professional cooperative is a mutual economic organization, which is different from other enterprises such as companies and must take its members as its main service target. The so-called "taking members as the main service object" means that farmers' professional cooperatives carry out business activities, mainly focusing on the needs of cooperative members, and the trading objects are mainly limited to the members of the cooperative. For example, a cooperative with ducks as its main members should focus on duck farmers who join the cooperative, rather than residents in nearby industrial and mining areas.
(2) Farmers' professional cooperatives should provide services around agricultural production and operation. Farmers' professional cooperatives carry out business activities with members as the main service objects, and at the same time, they must carry out business activities around the specific needs of members, that is, meet the relevant needs of members engaged in agricultural production and business activities. Generally speaking, farmers' professional cooperatives provide technical and information services related to the purchase of agricultural means of production, the sale, processing, transportation and storage of agricultural products, and agricultural production and operation. Specifically, different professional cooperatives should only provide professional services. For example, cooperatives with tea planting as their main members should carry out business activities around tea seedlings, fertilizers, tea machines and tea products processing. In the process of tea planting, business activities unrelated to tea planting, such as commercial housing development and sales, shall not be carried out.
Three, the business scope of farmers' professional cooperatives approved
How to identify "producers and operators of similar agricultural products or providers and users of similar agricultural production and operation services" in actual registration, should the industrial and commercial departments check and how to check? Due to the nature of farmers' professional cooperatives and a series of preferential support policies implemented by the state, if the control is not strict, it will inevitably lead to unfair competition with other market players. When examining and registering, we should pay attention to adding restrictive words such as "needed by members" and "members and similar producers and operators" in the business scope.
According to the Law on Farmers' Specialized Cooperatives, the Regulations on the Registration and Management of Farmers' Specialized Cooperatives and the Opinions on the Registration and Management of Farmers' Specialized Cooperatives issued by the State Council, the principles for the registration authority to verify the business scope of farmers' specialized cooperatives are as follows:
1. For the application submitted by the applicant according to its articles of association, the business scope shall be verified in accordance with the relevant provisions of the Farmers' Professional Cooperatives Law and the Regulations, such as organizing procurement and supplying agricultural means of production required by members; Organize the purchase and sale of products of members and similar producers and operators;
2. To provide services such as processing, transportation and storage of agricultural products required by members;
3, the introduction of new technologies, new varieties, to carry out technical training, technical exchanges and information consulting services related to agricultural production and operation.
4 "seed production and operation", "breeding livestock and poultry production and operation" and other business projects involving pre-registration permit shall be handled in accordance with the business projects licensed or approved by the relevant state departments. For business projects that do not involve pre-registration permission, according to the applicant's application, the business scope can also be approved with reference to the medium or small categories in the National Economic Industry Classification Standard.
5. According to the relevant provisions of the law and its regulations, industries that do not involve agricultural production, operation and service shall not become the business projects of farmers' professional cooperatives.