CLA-2-4:RR:NC:2:231 K88006
Ms Kelly O’Neill
All-Ways Forwarding Int’l, Inc.
701 Newark Avenue, Suite 300
Elizabeth, NJ 07208
RE: The tariff classification of “Boursin Cuisine” from France.
Dear Ms O’Neill:
In your letter dated July 16, 2004, you requested a tariff classification ruling on behalf of your client, Norseland Foods.
The product in question, called “Boursin Cuisine,” is a cultured cream, flavored with herbs, vegetables and spices. The fat content of the product is said to be 25 percent milk fat. A low fat version of the product contains only 14 percent by weight of milk fat. “Boursin Cuisine” will be imported in three different varieties,--namely, as a cultured cream flavored with tomato powder and herbs (“Tomatoes and Mediterranean Herbs”), with garlic and herbs (“Garlic and Fine Herbs “) or with peppers (“Three Peppers”). This product is offered as a “culinary aid/condiment” for use as a sauce on meat or fish at the end of cooking, as a topping on pastas, vegetables or baked potatoes, or as an ingredient in pies or gratins. A sample of “Tomatoes and Mediterranean Herbs,” packaged in a plastic cup, containing 25 deciliters (0.5283 pint) of product, listed cream and whole milk as its principal ingredients. Small amounts of other ingredients, such as, tomato powder, seasonings, plantes aromatiques, onion, preservatives, stabilizer, etc., were also included.
The applicable subheading for “Boursin Cuisine,” if entered while the quota remains open, will be 0403.90.04, Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTS), which provides for sour cream, not containing over 45 percent by weight of butterfat; buttermilk: fluid: sour cream: described in additional U.S. note5 to this chapter and entered pursuant to its provisions. The rate of duty will be 3.2 cents per liter.
The applicable subheading for “Boursin Cuisine,” if entered after the quota has closed, will be 0403.90.16, Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTS), which provides for sour cream, not containing over 45 percent by weight of butterfat; buttermilk: fluid: sour cream: other. The rate of duty will be 77.2 cents per liter.
Importations of dairy products, such as “Boursin Cuisine,” are subject to regulations administered by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
This ruling is being issued under the provisions of Part 177 of the Customs Regulations (19 C.F.R. 177).
A copy of the ruling or the control number indicated above should be provided with the entry documents filed at the time this merchandise is imported. If you have any questions regarding the ruling, contact National Import Specialist Thomas P. Brady at 646-733-3030.
Sincerely,
Robert B. Swierupski
Director,
National Commodity
Specialist Division