Online catering ＂agency settlement＂： no business license is required, only a thousand yuan settlement fee is required

　　On November 10, the State Food and Drug Administration issued the "Measures for the Supervision and Administration of Food Safety in Online Catering Services", which will take effect from January 1, 2018. This "method" has attracted widespread attention in the society as early as during the consultation period. The reason is that the food takeaway market is getting bigger and bigger, food safety issues are becoming more and more prominent, and new business models continue to challenge supervision. Therefore, many people have high hopes for this "method". However, some "small moves" in the market are already challenging this "method".

　　Our reporter, Zhao Li

　　At seven o’clock in the evening, it was time for Hu Ling, who was still working overtime. For more than half a year, Hu Ling’s takeout was basically "contracted" by the family-shared kitchen app "Go Home for Dinner".

　　Hu Ling, who works at an Internet company in Beijing, often works overtime to order takeout. However, a recent piece of news has caused Hu Ling to worry that his newly developed eating habits may be affected.

　　"I heard that the new regulations on online catering will be implemented next year, requiring online takeout to have a physical store and a food business license," Hu Ling said. "As far as I know, most of the family-shared kitchens are done by some unemployed people part-time, so it is impossible to meet these two conditions. This requirement of the new regulations will have some impact on the family-shared kitchen takeaway model."

　　The new rule, which Mr. Hu was referring to, is the "Measures for the Supervision and Administration of Food Safety in Online Catering Services" issued by the State Food and Drug Administration on November 10, which stipulates that online catering service providers should have physical stores and obtain food business licenses according to law, and must not operate beyond the scope. The "Measures" will take effect on January 1, 2018.

　　Hu Ling admitted that such regulations will definitely purify the online takeaway industry, which is good for consumer rights and food safety protection. "Previously, the media often reported news of some online takeaway black workshops, and the safety issues of online takeout were exposed during the" 3.15 "period last year. This regulation is a good thing in the field of food safety."

　　However, an investigation by a reporter from Legal Daily found that the emergence of online catering "agency settlement" services may reduce the positive significance of the new regulations.

　　Most consumers care about "physical stores"

　　At every meal, in the office building where Hu Ling works, the delivery staff of various platforms hurriedly shuttle between different floors with various food boxes. At this time, the elevator of the office building also becomes a "battlefield" between the staff who go downstairs to eat and the delivery staff.

　　Not long ago, Hu Ling and colleagues ate at a pizzeria. It was dinner time, but the restaurant surrounded by various office buildings had no other customers except them. Within 15 minutes of Hu Ling’s order, four or five takeaways came to pick up the food, and Hu Ling and the others who ate at the pizzeria were lined up after these takeaway orders.

　　"I’ll order takeout next time." This unpleasant experience made Hu Ling even more determined to order takeout.

　　Unlike Hu Ling, who was forced to choose, Qian Hao, 30, is a true takeaway enthusiast.

　　Safe, hygienic, edible and deliverable are all Qian Hao’s criteria for takeout. It is needless to say that he orders takeout at work and almost never cooks at home. Qian Hao relies more and more on takeout. "To be honest, I probably see the delivery staff more often than I see my friends."

　　However, while food delivery brings convenience to life, new problems are also becoming increasingly prominent.

　　The question of whether food delivery platforms can ensure food safety has worried consumers. In 2016, CCTV’s "3.15" evening exposed the existence of "black workshops" and a large number of management loopholes in food delivery platforms.

　　On these issues, Qian Hao said: "Although my attitude towards food is relatively casual, I am very concerned about safety and hygiene. After all, it is to be eaten in the stomach, so the takeaway stores I often order are those that I have confirmed have brick and mortar stores."

　　Speaking of brick and mortar stores, consumers also have something to say.

　　Chen Qing, a first-year graduate student at a Beijing university, once heard classmates mention that "some takeaway merchants just temporarily form a’small workshop ‘in their own homes and mass-produce takeaway food every day." Chen Qing felt that this "physical" form has no security guarantees, "but she does not deliberately avoid it when ordering food."

　　Like Qian Hao, Gong Qi, 25, works for an Internet company in Beijing, and ordering takeout has become an indispensable part of his life.

　　When ordering takeout, Gong Qi prefers to choose those who "have eaten in the brick and mortar store in person". "There are two reasons, one is that you will have a better understanding of the taste of the food, and the other is that you feel that the physical store is relatively more hygienic and safe."

　　In the field survey of Legal Daily reporters, 65% of respondents believed that having a physical store means more hygiene and safety.

　　However, there are also consumers who hold different views on "physical stores".

　　Ma Yuan, from Cixi, Zhejiang province, believes that merchants without "physical stores" also have their own advantages. "From the consumer’s perspective, takeaway merchants without physical stores tend to have lower prices and faster food delivery. From the store’s perspective, the operating costs are also much lower than those of physical stores."

　　Liu Hongyi, a 35-year-old branch owner of a Beijing-based restaurant chain, was happy to see the new regulations on online dining.

　　"If you allow a large number of’small family workshops’ to provide takeout, it will inevitably lead to unfair competition." Liu Hongyi said that it is difficult for brick-and-mortar stores to win the competition with "small workshops" due to operating costs. "Small workshops will also compete with each other, and in order to keep prices down, they will naturally sacrifice the quality of food."

　　Mr. Liu told reporters that competition in the takeout industry can be seen to some extent as "the networking of real competition", "but in the final analysis, everyone is comparing the quality of food."

　　"Agent Settlement Service" has appeared

　　A reporter from Legal Daily investigated and found that there are already "countermeasures" on the market for the "measures" on physical stores.

　　Reporters found that on some e-commerce platforms and information intermediary platforms, many merchants have launched "takeaway agency" services, and even on social platforms such as Weibo and WeChat or some question-and-answer platforms, some people claim to help takeaway operators without brick and mortar stores handle takeaway platform matters.

　　The reporter interviewed some merchants who provide agency services and learned that most agency service providers say they can take advantage of poor information and related loopholes to help some merchants, especially those operating without a license, enter the takeaway platform.

　　Reporters found that these agency service providers have a wide range of "services" and have operations all over the country. "National agency Meituan takeaway Ele.me word-of-mouth glutinous rice group buying…" A WeChat agency nicknamed "takeaway agency" wrote in Moments.

　　In addition, the agency service provider that placed an advertisement on a search platform also guaranteed that the ability to handle the goods will not be successful in refunding. "You can make absolutely delicious taste, and the taste is very good, but how to open a takeaway store is a more complicated thing, and the process and requirements of opening a takeaway store are very strict, not to mention wanting to do takeout without a business license. Now, we have also got a solution to this problem, so that everyone who sincerely wants to open a takeaway can have their own store." The above-mentioned agency service provider said, "First of all, there is a relatively big problem is the ghost store that you may have heard of before, and the problem of closing the store. Our analysis is that’great value and low price must be a lie, and the probability of being closed must be 100%. The other part is to change the store information and lend it to you for a few days and then take it back. Some are simply cheating deposits. These are all things we need to avoid when opening a store. A few hundred yuan to open a store must not be a regular channel. I also remind you to pay attention to this problem."

　　An agency service provider who claimed to be an industry insider told Legal Daily that if you sincerely want to do takeout and the hygiene conditions are hygienic enough, you can have special channels to open a takeaway store. "You don’t need a business license, you don’t need a store, as long as you really want to make money and want to open a store, you can open a store. According to the designated address and the designated store name, you only need to provide some basic information, and you can generally go online successfully in one to five days."

　　How to do it? The reporter also contacted the agent service provider nicknamed "takeaway agency" on WeChat. "By entering the takeaway platform through the agent, it only costs 1,000 to 1,500 yuan, and merchants can avoid cumbersome procedures and strict entry standards, and easily carry out the increasingly popular takeaway business" – this is the advertisement of the agent service provider.

　　What should I do if I don’t have a business license? "Takeaway Agent" Reply: If an unlicensed merchant wants to open a store on the takeaway platform, they only need to provide the agent with the store name, store photo, personal ID card and handheld ID photo, bank account and other information, and mobile phone number.

　　What should I do if I don’t have an actual store and just operate it at home? The "takeaway agent" replied: It doesn’t matter as long as it is on the first floor of the community, "if it is not on the first floor, it will be offline by the platform".

　　Will such an operation not be discovered by the regulatory authorities? Will it be investigated? "The takeaway agency" said with certainty, "no one will come to investigate".

　　The reporter found that although these agency service providers advertise their business on the Internet, they charge through micro-stores or Taobao stores.

　　In the WeChat Moments of an agency service provider, the reporter found that some merchants did not pay the price after entering the platform, and their business information and personal information were directly published in the circle of friends of the agency service provider, accompanied by a sentence – "This person is operating without a license, everyone should report him".