Agricultural corporation - nougyohojin

Among agricultural business entities (entities that conduct agricultural management), this refers to business entities with legal personality whose main purpose is agricultural management. Agricultural business entities include all business entities that conduct agricultural management, such as farmers, associations, companies, schools, and national and local public organizations, but among these, this refers to business entities whose main purpose is agricultural management and that have legal personality. Thus, in general, agricultural corporations refer to agricultural management corporations, and do not include agricultural organization corporations organized by agricultural managers (such as Type 1 agricultural cooperative corporations based on the Agricultural Cooperatives Act).

In 1999, the Japan Agricultural Corporation Association (previously the National Agricultural Corporation Association) was established with the aim of establishing and developing the management of agricultural corporations in Japan, and began actively supporting agricultural corporations in cooperation with the prefectural agricultural corporation associations under its umbrella.

Agricultural corporations became a social problem in Japan in the late 1950s, when a movement to make each farm household a single corporation arose in order to reduce income taxes. At the time, there was no clear legal provision on agricultural business entities with legal personality that could acquire agricultural land, which caused confusion. However, the issue was resolved when the Agricultural Cooperative Law was revised in 1962 to recognize agricultural cooperative corporations (type 2 corporations) that operate agricultural management through farmers' cooperative organizations, and the Farmland Law was revised to recognize agricultural production corporations that acquire agricultural land and operate agricultural management. In this regard, agricultural corporations that can acquire agricultural land (purchase, rent, etc.) and operate agricultural management in order to meet the requirements set forth in the Farmland Law are specifically called agricultural production corporations under the Farmland Law, and general partnership companies, limited partnership companies, limited liability companies, agricultural cooperative corporations, and joint-stock companies with stock transfer restrictions can become agricultural production corporations. Joint-stock agricultural production corporations were finally recognized with the revision of the Farmland Law on November 29, 2000 (implemented in March 2001).

[Takashi Takebe]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

農業事業体（農業経営を行う事業体）のうち、農業経営を主目的とする法人格所有の事業体。農業事業体には、農家、組合、会社、学校、国・地方公共団体など、農業経営を行うすべての事業体が含まれるが、このうち主目的が農業経営であって、かつ法人格を有する事業体のことをいう。このように、一般には、農業法人とは農業経営法人のことをさし、農業経営者が組織する農業組織法人（たとえば農協法に基づく1号農事組合法人など）を含めてはいない。

　1999年（平成11）、日本の農業法人の経営確立と発展を目途として、社団法人日本農業法人協会（前身は全国農業法人協会）が設立され、その傘下にある都道府県農業法人協会と連携して、活発な農業法人支援活動を開始した。

　わが国で農業法人が社会問題化したのは、1950年代後半、所得税軽減を目的に農家の一戸一法人化運動がおこったときである。当時、農用地を取得できる法人格所有の農業事業体について法制上の規定が明確でなかったため混乱を招いたが、1962年（昭和37）農業協同組合法の改正で農民の協同組合組織によって農業経営を行う農事組合法人（2号法人）と、農地法の改正で農用地を取得して農業経営を行う農業生産法人が、それぞれ認められることによって決着をみた。ここで、農地法に定める要件を満たすため、農用地を取得（購入・借入等）して農業経営を行うことができる農業法人を、農地法上とくに農業生産法人といっており、合名会社、合資会社、有限会社、農事組合法人、それに株式譲渡制限を行う株式会社が農業生産法人になれるとされている。なお、株式会社形態の農業生産法人は、2000年11月29日の農地法改正（2001年3月施行）によってようやく認められた。

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