违法生产经营一次性筷子该由谁来查处

韩怀忠

近日，某省电视台在新闻追踪栏目曝光了一家户在其地处偏僻的山区家中违法加工出售一次性筷子事件。据报道，该台记者根据群众举报，以购买者的身份前往某山村进行调查，发现该村一农户在自家院中对从外地收购的已使用过的一次性筷子进行简单地清洗、漂白、露天晾晒后销往某批发市场，并由该市场批发商进行简单包装后销售。

　 当地卫生监督机构工作人员在收看节目后，提出了进一步加强餐饮消费环节监管的措施，迅速启动了对全市餐饮消费环节的餐具消毒和一次性筷子采购使用情况的专项检查，并对该由谁来监管和查处此类一次性筷子生产经营行为展开了讨论。

　 毫无疑问，该农户重复加工销售已使用过的一次性筷子的行为违反了《中华人民共和国食品卫生法》的相关规定。根据该法的定义，一次性筷子属于食品用工具、设备范畴。该法第十二条规定：“食品容器、包装材料和食品用工具、设备必须符合卫生标准和卫生管理办法的规定。”第十三条规定：“食品容器、包装材料和食品用工具、设备的生产必须采用符合卫生要求的原材料。”依据《中华人民共和国食品卫生法》第四十四条规定：“违反本法规定，生产经营或者使用不符合卫生标准和卫生管理办法规定的食品添加剂、食品容器、包装材料和食品用工具、设备以及洗涤剂、消毒剂的，责令停止生产或者使用，没收违法所得，并处以违法所得一倍以上三倍以下的罚款；没有违法所得的，处以五千元以下的罚款。”

　 虽然《中华人民共和国食品卫生法》对食品用工具、设备的卫生提出了要求并制定了罚则，然而，在实际工作中，许多卫生监督机构并未对该类一次性筷子生产作坊进行监管。原因是：

　 首先，卫生部在1996年9月26日对安徽省卫生厅“关于食品添加剂、食品容器、包装材料和食品用工具、设备以及洗涤剂、消毒剂是否属于卫生许可证发放范围问题的复函”中指出：“根据《中华人民共和国食品卫生法》第二十七条第一款之规定，卫生许可证的发放范围仅限于食品生产经营企业和食品摊贩。对食品添加剂，食品容器、包装材料和食品用工具、设备以及洗涤剂、消毒剂生产经营和使用应当根据该法的有关规定及相应的卫生标准和卫生管理办法进行卫生监督管理。”自那时起，多数卫生行政部门就不再对包括一次性筷子在内的食品用工具、设备等实行卫生行政许可（个别省制定的卫生许可证发放管理办法包括了对此类生产单位行政许可的内容）。不实行行政许可，卫生监管也就无从下手，更何况，到目前为止，卫生部也未出台食品用工具、设备的卫生管理办法，所以就卫生监督机构来说，对该类作坊和产品的监管都存在法律法规的空白。目前，针对餐具的监管主要是对餐饮单位使用的餐具的消毒监测和管理，一次性筷子也是参照消毒餐具的卫生标准进行评定。

　 其次，自2004年国务院对食品安全实行分段监管后，卫生行政部门已不再是食品卫生法的唯一执法主体。根据分工，卫生部门只负责餐饮业和食堂等消费环节的监管，而将初级农产品监管、食品的生产加工和经营的监管权分别交给了农业、质检和工商部门，并由食品药品监管部门负责对食品安全的综合监督、组织协调和依法组织查处重大事故。但上述分工只是对食品安全监管的分段，食品安全是否包括与食品相关的产品安全，在理解上仍有歧义。如果包括与食品相关的产品的话，对该类作坊的监管和查处应属质检部门，如果不包括的话，对该类产品的监管则落入空档。目前有案可查的对该类产品进行管理的规范性文件是国家质量技术监督局2006年7月18日发出的“关于印发《食品用包装、容器、工具等制品生产许可通则》及《食品用塑料包装、容器、工具等制品生产许可审查细则》的通知”，该通知和相关通则规定，对食品用包装、容器、工具等制品实施市场准入制度。由此可以看出，质检部门已开始着手对该类产品生产企业的市场准入实施监管。

　 第三，虽然该类作坊不同于生产企业，但对于各类食品加工小作坊的监管属于各级质检部门是毫无疑义的。国家质检总局曾以“国质检食监[2007]284号”文件下发了《关于进一步加强食品加工小作坊监管工作的意见》，并明确界定了食品生产加工小作坊的定义：“是指固定从业人员少，有固定生产场所，生产条件简单，从事传统、低风险食品生产加工活动（不含现做现卖）的没有取得食品生产许可证的食品生产单位或个人。食品生产加工小作坊监管范围的产品目录由省级质量技术监督部门根据本地区实际情况制定。”虽然对于一次性筷子等与食品相关的产品是否列入了产品目录，我们不得而知，但既然质检部门已监管了生产企业，没有理由不监管作坊。

　 有鉴于此，笔者认为，《中华人民共和国食品卫生法》对包括一次性筷子在内的食品用工具、设备等规定了要求并制定了罚则，为了不在食品安全监管中出现空白和盲区，对此类与食品相关产品的监管仍宜按食品监管的分段原则予以明确。本文涉及的一次性筷子生产作坊，当由有管辖权的质检部门按照《中华人民共和国食品卫生法》第四十四条的规定予以查处，而对销售业户和餐饮单位，则分别由工商和卫生部门分别进行监管和查处。


中国保险监督管理委员会


中华人民共和国外资保险公司管理条例实施细则(英文版)


Detailed Rules for Implementation of Regulations of the People’s Republic of China on Administration of Foreign-funded Insurance Companies

Article 1
These Rules are formulated in accordance with the Insurance Law of the People’s Republic of China and the Regulations of the People’s Republic of China on Administration of Foreign-funded Insurance Companies (hereinafter referred to as “the Regulations”).

Article 2
A foreign insurance company under the Regulations refers to an insurance company registered and conducting insurance business outside the territory of China.

Article 3
The proportion of foreign equity in an insurance company incorporated within the territory of China by a foreign insurance company with a Chinese company or enterprise that conducts life insurance business (hereinafter referred to as “joint-equity life insurance company”) shall be no more than 50% of the total equity of the company.

The shares of a joint-equity life insurance company directly or indirectly held by a foreign insurance company shall not exceed the limit of proportion as stipulated in the preceding paragraph.

Article 4
For a foreign-funded insurance company established within the territory of China before the Regulations became effective with registered capital or working capital of less than RMB 200 million or an equivalent amount in a freely convertible currency, its registered capital or working capital shall be fully paid within 2 years after these Rules become effective. For those who fail to fully pay the registered capital or working capital, China Insurance Regulatory Commission shall not grant approval to their application for operation of new business.

Article 5
The registered capital or working capital of a foreign-funded insurance company shall be the actually paid-up currency.

Article 6
After establishing a branch, the foreign insurance company shall not withdraw the working capital in any form.

Article 7
The period of operation of insurance business being more than 30 years, which is mentioned in Item 1 of Article 8 of the Regulations, means that the foreign insurance company shall have continuously been running insurance business for more than 30 years, and the foreign insurance company’s acquisition of another institution or merger with another institution to establish a new insurance company, shall not affect the calculation of the business operation period.

The business operation period of a subsidiary of a foreign insurance company shall start from the date of establishment of the subsidiary.

Article 8
The representative office mentioned in Item 2 of Article 8 of the Regulations refers to the following representative offices approved by China Insurance Regulatory Commission (hereinafter referred to as “CIRC”):

(1) The representative office established by a foreign insurance company;
(2) The representative office established by a group to which a foreign insurance company belongs.

Article 9
The representative office established by a foreign insurance company or its group to which the insurance company belongs is only applicable to application for establishing one foreign-funded insurance company.

Article 10
The end of the year prior to the application for the establishment mentioned in Item 3 of Article 8 of the Regulations refers to the end of the previous fiscal year before the date of application.

Article 11
The other prudential requirements mentioned in Item 7 of Article 8 of the Regulations shall at least include the following requirements:

(1) Reasonable structure for corporate governance;
(2) Stable and sound risk control system;
(3) Sound internal control system;
(4) Effective Management Information System;
(5) Good operating performance without records of serious violation of laws and regulations.

Article 12
Where the applicant fails to provide the business license (duplicate) as stipulated in Item 2 of Article 9 of the Regulations, the applicant may provide a valid copy of the business license or a written certificate issued by the relevant authority evidencing the applicant’s eligibility to conduct insurance business.

Article 13
The certificate mentioned in Item 2 of Article 9 of the Regulations, which is issued by the relevant authority of the country or region where the foreign applicant is located to evidence the applicant’s solvency, shall include one of the following contents:

(1) Certifying that the applicant complies with the regulatory requirements of the country or region on solvency in the previous fiscal year as of the date when the relevant authority issues the certificate;
(2) Certifying that the applicant has no record of incompliance with the standard of the country or region on solvency in the previous fiscal year as of the date when the relevant authority issues the certificate.

Article 14
The Letter of Comments issued by the relevant authority of the country or region where the foreign applicant is located concerning the applicant’s application, which is mentioned in Item 2 of Article 9 of the Regulations, shall include the following contents:

(1) Whether the application for the establishment of an insurance institution in China complies with the laws and rules of the applicant’s country or region;
(2) Whether the authority approves the applicant’s application;
(3) The record of the punishment imposed on the applicant in the last three years prior to the date of issuance of the Letter of Comments by the relevant authority;

Article 15
The annual report mentioned in Item 3 of Article 9 of the Regulations shall include the Balance Sheets, Statements of Profit and Loss, and Cash Flow Statements of the applicant in the last three fiscal years prior to the date of application.

The annual report mentioned in the preceding paragraph shall be attached with the auditor’s report issued by an accounting or auditing firm authorized by the country or region where the applicant is located.

Article 16
Except otherwise specified by the laws or administrative regulations or approved by the State Council, the Chinese applicant mentioned in Item 4 of Article 9 of the Regulations shall satisfy the following requirements:

(1) The companies or enterprises with the capacity of legal person registered at the administration department of industry and commerce, excluding commercial banks, securities organizations and the foreign-funded enterprises specified in the Law of the People’s Republic of China on Foreign-funded Enterprises;
(2) Being approved by the administrative authority of the enterprise or its shareholders’ meeting;
(3) Good operating performance and in the previous fiscal year as of the application date being profitable;
(4) Making the investment with self-owned capital from legitimate sources.

Article 17
The relevant documents to be submitted by a Chinese applicant for the establishment of a joint-equity insurance company shall include business license (duplicate), articles of association, business structure, operation history, annual report and punishment record for the last three years.

Article 18
The person in charge of the preparation of a foreign-funded insurance company shall satisfy the following requirements:

(1) Academic degree above junior college level;
(2) Insurance or related work experience for over 2 years;
(3) No illegal and criminal record.

Article 19
Where an applicant applies for the extension of the preparation period according to the provisions specified in Article 11 of the Regulations, he shall, within 1 month before expiration of the original preparation period, submit a written application to CIRC and explain the reason.

Article 20
The preparation report mentioned in Item 1 of Article 11 of the Regulations shall summarize all the issues stated in other paragraphs under this article.

Article 21
The statutory capital verification organization mentioned in Item 4 of Article 11 of the Regulations refers to an accounting firm complying with the requirements of CIRC.

Article 22
The capital verification certificate mentioned in Item 4 of Article 11 of the Regulations shall include the following contents:

(1) A Capital Verification Report issued by a statutory capital verification organization;
(2) A copy of the original bank receipt voucher evidencing payment of the registered capital or working capital.

Article 23
The main person-in-charge mentioned in Item 5 of Article 11 of the Regulations refers to the general manager of the proposed branch of a foreign insurance company.

The letter of attorney issued to the person to be appointed as the main person-in-charge of the proposed branch of the foreign insurance company, refers to the letter of attorney issued to the person to be appointed as the general manager of the proposed branch of the foreign insurance company, which is signed by the Chairman of the Board of Directors or General Manager of the foreign insurance company.

The letter of attorney shall explicitly specify the scope of authorization granted to the authorized person.

Article 24
The senior managerial personnel of the proposed company mentioned in Item 6 of Article 11 of the Regulations shall have the qualifications specified by CIRC.

The senior managerial personnel of the branch of a foreign insurance company shall have the qualifications equal to those required for the counterparts in the headquarters of an insurance company.

Article 25
The materials regarding business place of the proposed company mentioned in Item 9 of Article 11 of the Regulations refers to the supporting documents evidencing the ownership or use-right of the business place.

The materials concerning other facilities related to the business mentioned in Item 9 of Article 11 of the Regulations shall include at least information about configuration of computer facilities, network construction and information management system.

Article 26
The following documents or materials to be provided by a foreign insurance company for an application for the establishment of a foreign-funded insurance company according to the requirements specified in the Regulations and these Rules, shall be notarized by a public notary legally established in the local country or region, or verified by the embassy or consulate of China in that country:

(1) The business license (duplicate) or valid copy of the business license;
(2) A letter of attorney issued to the proposed person-in-charge of the branch of a foreign insurance company;
(3) A letter of guarantee of a foreign insurance company to undertake the obligations of tax and duties payment and debts repayment on behalf of its branch in China.

Article 27
A foreign-funded insurance company may apply for establishing branches as needed according to business development.

The branch of a foreign insurance company can only conduct business within the territory of the province, autonomous region or municipality where the branch is located. Where the joint-equity insurance company or wholly-owned insurance company is prepared to conduct business in any other province, autonomous region or municipality outside its locality, it shall establish a branch in the place concerned.

A foreign insurance company may, according to actual circumstances, apply for establishing a central sub-branch or sub-branch, operating office or marketing service office. The establishment and management of marketing service offices shall be subject to other applicable regulations of CIRC, if any.

Article 28
Where a joint-equity or wholly-owned insurance company which has been established with a minimum registered capital of RMB200 million, applies for the first time for the establishment of a branch in every other province, autonomous region, or municipality outside its locality, it shall increase the registered capital by no less than RMB20 million.

By the time of applying for the establishment of a branch, if the registered capital of a joint-equity or wholly-owned insurance company has reached the amount as stipulated in the preceding paragraph, the company will no longer be required to increase its registered capital.

Where the registered capital of a joint-equity or wholly-owned insurance company has reached RMB500 million and where the solvency of the company is adequate, no increase of registered capital is required when the company applies for the establishment of a branch.

Article 29
A foreign-funded insurance company that applies for the establishment of a branch shall satisfy the following requirements:

(1) Its solvency margin shall comply with relevant regulations specified by CIRC.
(2) Its internal control system is sound and there is no record of punishment; where the operating period exceeds 2 years, there is no record of punishment in the most recent 2 years;
(3) It has senior managerial personnel of the branch with the relevant qualifications specified by CIRC.

Article 30
A foreign-funded insurance company that applies for the establishment of a branch shall submit an application to CIRC and provide the following documents in triplicate:

(1) A letter of application for establishment;
(2) Audited solvency status reports as of the end of the previous fiscal year and as of the end of the last quarter;
(3) A three-year business development plan and market analysis for the proposed branch;
(4) Resume(s) of the person(s)-in-charge of the organization preparation and relevant certificates.

Article 31
CIRC shall examine the application and decide, within 20 days after receiving the complete application documents, whether or not to grant approval; in case no approval is granted, CIRC shall inform the applicant in writing of the decision and explain the reason.

After approval is granted, the applicant shall complete the preparation within 6 months. Where the applicant fails to do so within the prescribed time limit, if the reason is justified and subject to approval by CIRC, the period may be extended for 3 months. Where the preparation is still not completed within the extended period, the original approval document issued by CIRC becomes void automatically.

The preparing body may not be engaged in any commercial activities concerning insurance.

Article 32
After the preparation is completed, the applicant shall apply to CIRC for opening business and submit the following documents in triplicate:

(1) A letter of application for opening business;
(2) A progress report of the preparation work;
(3) Resume(s) of senior managerial personnel to be appointed and relevant certificates;
(4) Relevant certificates of ownership or use-right of the office for the proposed branch, information regarding the configuration of computer facilities, network construction, and internal structure and staff.

Article 33
CIRC shall decide, within 20 days after receiving the complete application documents for opening business, whether or not to grant approval; in case the application is approved, a license for conducting insurance business shall be issued to the branch; in case the application is disapproved, CIRC shall inform the applicant in writing of the decision and explain the reason.

The branch with approval for opening business shall go through the formalities of business registration at the administration department of industry and commerce by presenting the approval document and the license for conducting insurance business and accordingly obtain business license from the authority before opening business.

Article 34
Unless otherwise stipulated in these Rules, the examination and administration of the qualifications of the senior managerial personnel of a foreign-funded insurance company and its branches shall be subject to the relevant regulations of CIRC.

Article 35
Where a joint-equity or wholly-owned property insurance company applies for dissolution when it splits, or merges with another one, or dissolves pursuant to the articles of association, such dissolution must be subject to approval of CIRC and the following documents shall be submitted:

(1) A letter of application signed by the Chairman of the Board of Directors of the company;
(2) The resolution of the meeting of shareholders;
(3) Composition of the proposed liquidation group and a plan for liquidation;
(4) A proposal for solving the outstanding liabilities.

Article 36
The joint-equity or wholly-owned property insurance company whose dissolution has been approved by CIRC shall, from the date of receiving the approval document from CIRC, terminate any new business activities and hand in the license for conducting insurance business to CIRC and form a liquidation group within 15 days.

Article 37
The liquidation group shall, within 5 days after its establishment, inform the relevant authorities concerning the administration departments of industry and commerce, tax, labor and social security in writing of the liquidation procedure and conditions.

Article 38
The liquidation group shall, within 1 month from the date of establishment, appoint an accounting firm pursuant to the requirements of CIRC to conduct auditing, and shall deliver an auditor’s report to CIRC within three months from the date of appointment.

Article 39
The liquidation group shall submit the latest liability liquidation and assets disposal report to CIRC before the tenth date of each month.

Article 40
The newspaper mentioned in Article 28 of the Regulations refers to the newspaper specified by CIRC.

Article 41
The foreign property insurance company that applies for cancellation of its branch in China shall submit an application to CIRC for approval and present the following materials:

(1) A letter of application signed by the Board of Directors or General Manager of the foreign property insurance company;
(2) Composition of the proposed liquidation group and a plan for liquidation;
(3) A proposal for solving the outstanding liabilities.

The procedures of application for dissolution of a joint-equity or foreign-funded property insurance company specified in the Regulations and these Rules shall be applicable to the specific procedures for the foreign property insurance company to cancel its branch in China.

Where the head office of a branch of a foreign property insurance company is dissolved or cancelled or declared bankruptcy according to law, the liquidation and liability disposal of the branch of such foreign property insurance company shall comply with the regulations concerning dissolution of the joint-equity or wholly-owned property insurance company stipulated in Article 30 of the Regulations and these Rules.

Article 42
The foreign-funded insurance company in violation of the relevant provisions of these Rules shall be subject to punishment by CIRC according to the provisions specified in Insurance Law, the Regulations and other relevant laws and regulations.

Article 43
The documents, materials and written reports to be submitted or reported under the Regulations and these Rules shall be prepared in Chinese version, and the Chinese version shall prevail in the event of discrepancy between the Chinese version and the foreign language version.

Article 44
The period specified in the Regulations and these Rules shall start from the date when the relevant materials are delivered to CIRC. If the application documents provided by the applicant is incomplete and further delivery is needed, the period shall start from the date when the supplementary materials are delivered to CIRC.

The period concerning approval and report delivery prescribed in these Rules refers to working days.

Article 45
The issues concerning administration of a foreign-funded insurance company that are not specified in the Regulations or these Rules shall be governed by the applicable laws, administrative rules and relevant regulations of CIRC.

The establishment of a foreign-funded reinsurance company shall comply with the Regulations on Establishment of Reinsurance Companies. The issues not specified in the Regulations on Establishment of Reinsurance Companies shall be governed by these Rules.

Article 46
These Rules shall, mutatis mutandis, apply to insurance companies that are established and operated in Chinese mainland by insurance companies from Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, Macao Special Administrative Region or Taiwan region. The issues otherwise stipulated in the laws, administrative rules or administrative protocols shall be governed by the stipulations therein.

Article 47
These Rules shall come into effect as of June 15, 2004.