§ 3 — Definitions

§ 3. Definitions. (a) The term "agricultural product" means any\nproduct of cultivating land, and includes floricultural, horticultural,\nviticultural, forestry, nut, dairy, livestock, poultry, bee and any farm\nproducts or by-products thereof.\n (b) The terms "feed," "food," and "food products" mean any substance\ncapable of human, animal or poultry consumption, including all articles\nof drink, confectionery or condiment, whether simple, mixed or compound,\nand all substances or ingredients added to food for any purpose.\n (c) The terms "cooperative," "cooperative association" and\n"cooperative corporation" mean a corporation organized under this\nchapter, or heretofore organized under any special or general law of\nthis state, for the cooperative rendering of mutual help and service to\nits members. A cooperative shall be either a general cooperative, a\nmembership cooperative, an agricultural cooperative as defined in\narticle six of this chapter or a worker cooperative as defined in\nsection eighty-one of this chapter.\n (d) A cooperative corporation shall be classed as a non-profit\ncorporation, since its primary object is not to make profits for itself\nas such, or to pay dividends on invested capital, but to provide service\nand means whereby its members may have the economic advantage of\ncooperative action, including a reasonable and fair return for their\nproduct and service.\n (e) The term "member" means the holder of a membership in a\ncooperative, whether evidenced by a certificate of membership or by a\ncertificate of stock or by other authorized means of identification. The\nterm includes a member association or corporation as provided in this\nchapter.\n (f) The term "person" includes an individual, a partnership, a\ncorporation, an association, or two or more individuals acting together.\n (g) The term "net margins" or "net retained proceeds" means the amount\nby which the undistributed receipts from operations exceed the expenses\nthereof.\n (h) The term "patron" refers to persons, partnerships, associations\nand corporations who transact business with the cooperative either as\nproducers or purchasers, whether members or not.\n (i) A cooperative corporation does not include any corporation which\nis formed or may be formed under the banking law, the insurance law, the\nrailroad law or the transportation corporations law. Except as otherwise\nexpressly provided in this chapter, no cooperative corporation shall do\nany business for which a corporation may be formed under any such law;\nbut the lawful operations of a cooperative credit corporation as\nauthorized in this chapter shall not be deemed banking or violation of\nany provisions of law as to banking.\n (j) The term "cooperative," "cooperation" or any abbreviation,\nvariation or similitude thereof, shall not be used as or in a name\nexcept by a corporation defined in this chapter. Any cooperative\ncorporation may sue for an injunction against such prohibited use of the\nterm. A violation of this prohibition is a misdemeanor, punishable by a\nfine of not more than five hundred dollars.\n (k) A membership cooperative is a non-stock cooperative which admits\nonly natural persons to membership, which provides services only to its\nmembers and which makes no distribution of net retained proceeds other\nthan to its members on the basis of their patronage.\n (l) The terms "buying, selling or leasing homes for its members" and\n"conducting housing" shall include but not be limited to, the purposes\nand uses of residential facilities for the mentally disabled licensed by\nthe office of mental health or the office for people with developmental\ndisabilities.\n