Mar-2-05 CO:R:C:V 733104 RSD
Jim Dick
Quality Assurance Manager
Indian Summer
247 West Ave
Lyndonville, New York 14098
RE: Abbreviations of Argentina and Hungary for country of origin
marking purposes
Dear Mr. Dick:
This is in reply to your letter of January 31, 1990, and
telephone conversation of February 9, 1990, concerning acceptable
abbreviations to indicate countries of origin of imported apple
juice.
FACTS:
You propose to mark the country of origin on containers of
apple juice made from imported concentrate by using the
abbreviations "Arg" or "Argtin" for Argentina and "Hun" or "Hung"
for Hungary. You want to know if these abbreviations are
acceptable.
ISSUE:
Whether the abbreviations "Arg" or "Argtin" for Argentina
and "Hun" or "Hung" for Hungary are in accordance with 19 U.S.C.
1304.
LAW AND ANALYSIS:
Section 304 of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (19 U.S.C.
1304), provides that, unless excepted, every article of foreign
origin imported into the U.S. shall be marked in a conspicuous
place as legibly, indelibly, and permanently as the nature of the
article (or container) will permit, in such a manner as to
indicate to the ultimate purchaser in the U.S. the name of the
country of origin of the article (emphasis added). Part 134,
Customs Regulations (19 CFR Part 134), implements the country of
origin marking requirements and exceptions of 19 U.S.C. 1304.
The requirement of the marking law (19 U.S.C. 1304) at issue
here is the necessity to indicate the English name of the
country of articles imported into the U.S. Section 134.45 of the
Customs Regulations (19 CFR 134.45), states that abbreviations
which unmistakably indicate the name of a country ...are
acceptable.
The purpose of the marking as explained in American
Burtonizing v. United States, 13 Ct. Cust. Appls. 652 (1926)
"[W]as to require a marking such as would be understood by
purchasers of foreign-made goods as giving definite and reliable
information as to the country of origin. It is not reasonable to
suppose that Congress, by use of the word 'indicate' meant only
that words used should hint at the country of origin. The object
sought to be obtained by the legislature could best be obtained
by an indication which was clear, plain, and unambiguous and
which did more than merely hint at the country of origin. We do
not think that Congress intended that American purchasers,
consumers, or users of foreign-made goods should be required to
speculate, investigate or interpret in order that they ascertain
the county of origin."
In HQ 727693 (March 29, 1985), Customs stated its position
on abbreviated country names and Venezuela in particular. Customs
determined that the abbreviation "Venz" was not an acceptable
abbreviation for Venezuela. The ruling noted that "the instances
in which Customs has permitted the use of abbreviations instead
of the entire name of the country of origin have been limited.
It is our view that most abbreviations do not 'unmistakably'
identify the country of origin and are therefore unacceptable.
The ultimate purchaser should be able to ascertain the country of
origin at a glance without any guesswork.... We can think of no
abbreviation for Venezuela which would satisfy the statutory or
regulatory requirements."
Similarly, the suggested abbreviations "Arg" or "Argtin" for
Argentina and "Hun" or "Hung" for Hungary are not acceptable
because they do not unmistakably identify the country of origin.
We find that ultimate purchasers may not be able to ascertain at
a glance without any guesswork the country of origin of the apple
juice from these markings.
Although abbreviations are permissible under the marking
law, we believe the statutory preference is that full English
language names be used whenever possible, and it is the policy of
this office to encourage such marking. Only in those instances
where space limitations make abbreviations necessary, as few
letters as necessary may be deleted from the full English
language name of a country. The smaller the number of missing
letters, the more likely it is the resulting abbreviation
unmistakably identifies the proper country name. We suggest no
abbreviations be used unless expressly approved by this office.
HOLDING:
The abbreviations "Arg" or "Argtin" and "Hun" or "Hung" do
not unmistakably indicate the country names of Argentina and
Hungary and therefore do not comply with 19 U.S.C. 1304 and 19
CFR 134.45(b).
Sincerely,
Marvin M. Amernick
Chief, Value, Special Programs