What concept did the new Law on Quality and Safety of Agricultural Products first put forward?

On September 5th, the Law Commission of the National People's Congress Standing Committee (NPCSC) held a special interview around the newly revised Law on Quality and Safety of Agricultural Products, in which the reporter participated by video link.

Amend the law, tighten the responsibility of all parties in the quality and safety of agricultural products, and increase the punishment for illegal acts.

The Law on Quality and Safety of Agricultural Products was enacted in 2006, and some clauses were revised in 20 18. In recent years, the quality and safety situation of agricultural products in China has generally improved, and the qualified rate of routine monitoring of major agricultural products has remained stable at over 97%. It should be said that this law has played an important role. Yue, director of the Economic Law Office of the National People's Congress Standing Committee (NPCSC) Law Committee, said that agricultural products refer to primary products from planting, forestry, animal husbandry and fishery, which are related to the food safety and reassurance of ordinary people and have high social concern.

At present, there are still some problems and deficiencies in the quality and safety of agricultural products. The masses are very worried about problems such as excessive pesticide and veterinary drug residues in agricultural products, excessive heavy metals and illegal addition of toxic and harmful substances. The CPC Central Committee attaches great importance to the quality and safety of agricultural products. General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out that the "four strictest" requirements of "the strictest standards, the strictest supervision, the severest punishment and the most serious accountability" should be used to ensure the "safety on the tip of the tongue" of the people.

202 1 10, the State Council submitted the revised draft of the Law on Quality and Safety of Agricultural Products to the 31st meeting in the National People's Congress Standing Committee (NPCSC) for the first time; In June and September, 2022, the thirty-fifth and thirty-sixth meetings of the National People's Congress Standing Committee (NPCSC) successively deliberated, and the revised Law on Quality and Safety of Agricultural Products was passed in the third instance.

What are the main contents of the revision of the agricultural product quality and safety law?

Yue introduced that the newly revised Law on the Quality and Safety of Agricultural Products has consolidated the responsibilities of all parties in the quality and safety of agricultural products. Incorporate farmers, farmers' professional cooperatives, agricultural product production enterprises and collection, storage and transportation links into the scope of supervision, and clarify that agricultural product producers and operators should be responsible for the quality and safety of agricultural products they produce and operate, and implement the main responsibility; In view of the emerging new formats and forms of agricultural products sales, the quality and safety responsibilities of producers and operators who sell agricultural products on the network platform and engage in cold chain logistics of agricultural products, as well as the inspection and certificate inspection obligations of agricultural products wholesale markets, agricultural products sales enterprises and food producers are stipulated, and the responsibilities of each link are clarified. At the same time, local people's governments should be responsible for the quality and safety of agricultural products within their respective administrative areas. For the local people's governments with poor quality and safety of agricultural products and outstanding problems, the people's governments at higher levels can conduct responsibility interviews with their main responsible persons, demand rectification and implement local territorial responsibilities.

The newly revised Law on the Quality and Safety of Agricultural Products has increased the penalties for illegal acts. In line with the Food Safety Law, we will increase fines and penalties for agricultural products that use agricultural inputs or other toxic and harmful substances prohibited by the state in the production and operation of agricultural products, sell chemical residues such as pesticides and veterinary drugs, or exceed the standard of toxic and harmful substances such as heavy metals; If a crime is constituted, criminal responsibility shall be investigated according to law. At the same time, considering China's national conditions and agricultural conditions, the punishment for farmers is relatively light compared with other agricultural product producers and operators.

In addition, the newly revised Law on Quality and Safety of Agricultural Products has strengthened the risk management of quality and safety of agricultural products and the formulation and implementation of standards; Improve the control measures in the whole process of agricultural products production and management; Enhanced the effectiveness of agricultural product quality and safety supervision and management.

Prominent agricultural products quality and safety commitment performance certificate system into the law, the pilot work was carried out in 20 16.

The newly revised Law on the Quality and Safety of Agricultural Products clearly puts forward the implementation of the commitment certificate system for the quality and safety of agricultural products. For what reason, how to implement it next?

Xiao Fang, director of the Agricultural Products Quality and Safety Supervision Department of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, said that promoting the credit commitment system is an important part of promoting the modernization of national governance capacity and governance system. Compliance commitment and certification system is an important institutional innovation to adapt to the new situation and requirements and strengthen the quality and safety of agricultural products. The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs began to carry out pilot projects in some provinces in 20 16 and nationwide in 20 19, and constantly improved this system in practice. The revision of the Law on the Quality and Safety of Agricultural Products has made specific provisions on the certificate issued by the producers of agricultural products, the certificate collected, preserved and reissued by the purchasers, and the certificate of inspection in the wholesale market, which has clarified the legal responsibility and further established the long-term basic position of this system in the quality and safety of agricultural products.

Xiao Fang introduced that there are three main considerations for raising this system to a statutory system. First, the main responsibility of producers should be better implemented. The revised Law on Quality and Safety of Agricultural Products requires producers to issue certificates of conformity on the basis of self-control and self-inspection, which reflects the inherent requirements for producers to implement the main responsibility. The second is to better promote the effective docking between the origin and the market. Agricultural products "from farmland to table" go through many links, and ensuring the traceability of agricultural products in circulation is the premise of realizing quality and safety responsibility. The certificate of commitment to meet the standards contains not only the quality and safety information of agricultural products, but also the specific information of producers, so that all kinds of subjects engaged in the purchase and sale of agricultural products can clearly explain the sources of agricultural products they operate. The third is to add a quality and safety defense line. Producers and buyers of mixed or sub-packaged agricultural products issue commitment certificates when each batch of products goes on the market, and promise not to use banned pesticides, veterinary drugs and other compounds, and promise that the residues of conventional pesticides and veterinary drugs used will not exceed the standard, which is conducive to integrating self-monitoring and self-discipline into daily life. Various subjects engaged in the purchase and sale of agricultural products establish a system of collection, preservation and verification of commitment performance certificates, which is conducive to the formation of a normalized reversal mechanism for agricultural product producers to implement the main responsibility. According to the relevant information in the letter of commitment, the relevant departments can implement more effective and accurate supervision, and all sectors of society can exercise their supervision rights more conveniently.

"In the next step, we will sum up the trial experience and work with relevant departments to formulate the Measures for the Administration of Quality and Safety Commitment Certificates of Agricultural Products, detailing the scope of application, commitment content and specific requirements such as collection, preservation and inspection, so as to provide a basis for standardizing the implementation of this system in various places." Xiao Fang said that the revision of the law also clearly established a traceability catalogue of agricultural products quality and safety, and implemented traceability management for agricultural products listed in the catalogue. The certificate of commitment to reaching the standard effectively solves the problem of the connection between the place of origin and the market, and opens up the most critical node, which is an important basic support for the implementation of traceability management. "We will integrate the commitment certificate system and the traceability system of agricultural products quality and safety to promote each other."

Development promotes the development of green agriculture, and the concept of "green high-quality agricultural products" is put forward at the legal level for the first time.

In recent years, the CPC Central Committee has made many arrangements for green agriculture and high-quality agricultural development. What are the manifestations of this revision of the Law on Quality and Safety of Agricultural Products?

Xiao Fang introduced that this revision focuses on key tasks such as increasing the supply of green and high-quality agricultural products and improving the competitiveness of agricultural quality and efficiency, highlighting standardized production, highlighting quality improvement and highlighting quality mark management.

Among them, the scope of quality and safety standards for agricultural products has been clarified, and provisions have been made to improve the standard system, promote production according to standards, establish a quality management system, and establish standardized demonstrations, and encourage and support the implementation of hazard analysis, critical control point system, and good agricultural practices.

Adapt to the needs of high-quality life, encourage the selection of high-quality varieties, adopt green production and whole-process quality control technology, improve the quality of agricultural products and build excellent agricultural products brands. At the same time, support the construction of cold chain logistics infrastructure, improve relevant standards and norms and supervision and guarantee mechanisms, so that "good products" of origin can be transformed into "good taste" in consumers' mouths.

In addition, the term "green high-quality agricultural products" was put forward at the legal level for the first time, which encouraged qualified producers and operators of agricultural products to apply for agricultural product quality marks, clearly strengthened the protection and management of agricultural products with geographical indications, and provided support for cultivating agricultural boutique brands and promoting high quality and good price of agricultural products.

Responsibility pays special attention to the "first mile" of supervision work and compacts the "last mile" of supervision responsibility.

The quality and safety of agricultural products are "produced" and "managed", especially the "first kilometer". In this regard, what are the provisions of the newly revised Law on the Quality and Safety of Agricultural Products?

Xiao Fang introduced that the focus of agricultural product quality and safety work is at the grassroots level, and the adjustment objects of agricultural product quality and safety law are scattered in the vast rural areas. Fields, farmers and fish ponds are the main positions of work. Since last year, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs has promoted the grid management of quality and safety of agricultural products in villages and towns throughout the country, and promoted the construction of a management mechanism of "regional freezing, grid ownership and personnel responsibility". At present, there are 0/10,000 township supervisors and 420,000 village coordinators.

In order to compact the "last mile" of supervision responsibility and do a good job in the "first mile" of supervision work, the Law on Quality and Safety of Agricultural Products was revised this time, clarifying that township governments should implement the responsibility of supervision and management of agricultural products quality and safety, and assist the people's governments at higher levels and their relevant departments to do a good job in supervision and management of agricultural products quality and safety; Encourage and support grassroots mass autonomous organizations to establish a working system for agricultural product quality and safety information officers and assist in related work.