"The people are the foundation of the country, and the valley is the life of the people. "Food security is the "ballast stone" related to the national fortune and people's livelihood, and grain is the basis for a bumper harvest. It is the spring ploughing season, the field is full of farmers and uncles are busy, the so-called "plant a grain of millet in spring, harvest 10,000 seeds in autumn", for farmers, it is very important to choose good seeds. In this process, the manufacture and sale of fake seeds to peasants not only disrupts the order of the market economy, but also affects normal agricultural production and causes immeasurable losses to peasants.
Brief facts of the case
A few years ago, a farmer approached the agricultural department and reported that there was a problem with the seeds he bought: "I bought 50,000 yuan of rice seeds from the family of a boss surnamed Xu, and he claimed that the germination rate of this batch of seeds was more than 90%, but the germination rate of the rice I planted was less than 50%!" "We ordinary people farm just to make some money, how good is the germination rate so low!"
It turned out that the farmer bought a batch of seeds from Xu, and after sowing the seeds, he looked forward to the seeds germinating every day. But time passed, and his land was still bare. At this point, he muttered, "Is there a problem with the seeds?" With such a question, he approached the agricultural department, hoping to give himself an explanation.
To this end, the agricultural department immediately launched an investigation. After investigation, the boss surnamed Xu reported by the farmer is a large local farmer in Baoying, and all the grain cannot be sold successfully after the harvest every year. In order to "reuse" the surplus commercial grain at hand, Xu Moumou actually started the idea of the surrounding farmers. From 2021 to 2023, without obtaining a crop seed production and operation license and crop seed production filing procedures, Xu Moumou used commercial grain as seeds and sold them to many surrounding farmers at a price of about 2 yuan per catty lower than the regular seeds in the market, with a total sales amount of more than 240,000 yuan. The Baoying County Agriculture and Rural Bureau determined that the seeds produced and operated by Xu Moumou without labels were fake seeds.
Links to judgments and statutes
The court decided:
The court held at trial that the defendant Xu Moumou sold his self-grown commercial grain in the name of seeds, passing off the fake as genuine, and his behavior constituted the crime of selling fake and shoddy products. In view of his voluntary surrender, truthful confession of the facts of the crime, admission of guilt and acceptance of punishment, and voluntary withdrawal of unlawful gains, he was given a lighter punishment and lenient disposition in accordance with law, and was sentenced to one year and six months imprisonment, suspended for two years, and fined 250,000 yuan.
Links to the law:
Paragraph 1 of Article 40 of the Seed Law of the People's Republic of China: The seeds sold shall comply with national or industry standards, with labels and instructions for use. The content of the label and instructions for use shall be consistent with the seeds sold. Seed producers and operators are responsible for the authenticity of the labeled content and the quality of the seeds.
Article 48 of the Seed Law of the People's Republic of China: It is forbidden to produce and sell fake and inferior seeds. The departments in charge of agriculture and rural affairs, forestry and grasslands, and relevant departments shall crack down on illegal acts of producing and operating fake and inferior seeds in accordance with the law, protect the legitimate rights and interests of farmers, and maintain the market order of fair competition.
The following seeds are false seeds:
(1) Passing off non-seeds as seeds or seeds of such varieties as seeds of other varieties;
(2) The type or variety of seeds does not match the content of the label or there is no label.
The following seeds are inferior:
(1) The quality is lower than the standards provided by the state;
(2) The quality is lower than the label index;
(3) Quarantine pests provided for by the State.
Article 52 of the Law of the People's Republic of China on the Protection of Consumer Rights and Interests: Where a business operator provides goods or services and causes damage to consumers' property, it shall bear civil liability such as repair, rework, replacement, return, replenishment of the quantity of goods, refund of payment for goods and service fees, or compensation for losses in accordance with the provisions of law or the agreement of the parties.
Paragraph 1 of Article 55 of the Law of the People's Republic of China on the Protection of Consumer Rights and Interests: Where a business operator commits fraud in providing goods or services, it shall, at the request of the consumer, increase the compensation for the losses suffered, and the amount of the increased compensation shall be three times the price of the goods purchased by the consumer or the cost of the service received by the consumer; Where the law provides otherwise, follow those provisions.
Article 62 of the Law of the People's Republic of China on the Protection of Consumer Rights and Interests: Farmers' purchase and use of means of production directly used in agricultural production shall be implemented with reference to this Law.
Article 147 of the Criminal Law of the People's Republic of China: [Crime of Producing and Selling Fake and Shoddy Pesticides, Veterinary Drugs, Chemical Fertilizers, and Seeds] Producing fake pesticides, fake veterinary drugs, or fake chemical fertilizers, selling pesticides, veterinary drugs, fertilizers, or seeds that are known to be fake or have lost their effectiveness, or producers or sellers pass off substandard pesticides, veterinary drugs, fertilizers, or seeds as qualified pesticides, veterinary drugs, or fertilizers. Anyone who suffers a relatively large loss in production shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not more than three years or short-term detention and/or a fine of not less than 50 percent but not more than two times the amount of sales; if he suffers major losses in production, he shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not less than three years but not more than seven years and shall also be fined not less than 50 percent but not more than two times the amount of sales; and if he suffers especially heavy losses in production, he shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not less than seven years or life imprisonment and shall also be fined not less than 50 percent but not more than two times the amount of sales or confiscation of property.
Article 140 of the Criminal Law of the People's Republic of China: Where a producer or seller adulterates or adulterates a product, passes off a fake product as genuine, shoddy or a substandard product as a qualified product, and the sales amount is between 50,000 and 200,000 RMB, he shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not more than two years or short-term detention, and/or a fine of not less than 50% but not more than two times the sales amount; where the sales amount is between 200,000 and 500,000 RMB, a sentence of between two and seven years imprisonment and a concurrent fine of between 50 and 2 times the sales amount is to be given; where the sales amount is between 500,000 and 2,000,000 RMB, a sentence of 7 or more years imprisonment is to be given, and a fine of between 50 and 2 times the sales amount is to be given; where the sales amount is more than 2,000,000 RMB, the sentence is 15 years imprisonment or life imprisonment, and a concurrent fine of between 50% and 2 times the sales amount or confiscation of property.
What the judge said
"Choose good seeds for planting, one ridge and two ridges". Seeds are not only an important raw material for agricultural production, but also the most basic guarantee for achieving stable grain production, and the quality and safety of seeds are more related to farmers' income, agricultural development, and rural revitalization. When farmers or agricultural cooperatives purchase seeds, they should purchase them from regular business premises, choose varieties approved by the national or provincial agricultural administrative departments, and require sellers to show seed quality certificates. After purchase, the purchase order and payment voucher should be kept, and the seller should be required to issue relevant bills as evidence for future rights protection. If there is an abnormal situation after planting, the field site should be protected and the local agricultural department should be reported for help in time.
At the same time, seed sales operators should also strictly abide by the bottom line of the law and put an end to the sale of fake and inferior seeds. The court will always adhere to the strict punishment of all kinds of production and sale of fake and shoddy agricultural materials and other crimes that pit farmers and harm farmers, maintain a high-pressure situation and crack down on the crime of making and selling fake agricultural materials, escort spring plowing and preparation, and effectively safeguard the safety of the local seed industry market and the legitimate rights and interests of the peasant masses.
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Source: Yangzhou Intermediate People's Court
Editors of this issue: Zhai Yiting and Wei Rong
Review of this issue: Wang Meihong
Producer of this issue: Zheng Hongyan
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