CLA-2-09:RR:NC:N2:228
Mr. Hans Meier
Transform Pack, Inc.
P.O. Box 1354
310 Baig Blvd.
Moncton, NB Canada E1C 8T6
RE: The tariff classification of seasoning sheets from Canada
Dear Mr. Meier:
In your letter dated June 28, 2007, and in an undated letter, received by this office on August 2, 2007, you requested a tariff classification ruling.
Ingredients breakdowns and four samples were submitted with your second letter. The products are seasoning sheets, consisting of spices or a mixture of spices and other ingredients applied to a flexible packaging film using a patented process. The spices and seasoning blends are shipped to your facility by clients in the United States; Transform Pack applies the blends to the film using an edible adhesive. Users of the finished product apply the film to meat, poultry, or fish for a specified time, then remove the film, leaving a seasoned food product, ready for cooking. Black Pepper EX 250, packed in a sealed plastic film pouch containing 100 sheets measuring 3 x 4 inches, is said to be composed of 70-95 percent black pepper, 2-8 percent invert syrup, and less than two percent, each, of maltodextrin, malic acid, modified food starch, pectin, and xanthan gum. Pepper Garlic Blend BS 220, in a pouch containing 25 13-inch square sheets, consists of 70-90 percent “irradiated spices,” 10-30 percent garlic powder, 5-10 percent invert syrup, and less than two percent each of maltodextrin, malic acid, modified food starch, pectin, and xanthan gum. Three Pepper Blend BS 80 with Mesquite & Papain, a pouch of 5 sheets measuring 6.5 x 8 inches, consists of 10-40 percent salt, 10-30 percent “irradiated spices,” 5-15 percent, each, of dehydrated vegetables and maltodextrin, 4-9 percent invert syrup, 2-5 percent hydrolyzed vegetable protein, and less than 2 percent each of silicone dioxide, vegetable oil, mesquite flavor, papain, malic acid, modified food starch, pectin and xanthan gum. The unmarked sample of Tuscan Roasted Garlic & Herb WI 210 is packed in a pouch containing sheets measuring approximately 4” x 5”. This product is said to be composed of 15-30 percent, each, of dehydrated roasted garlic and parmesan cheese, 10-20 percent each of salt and maltodextrin, 4-9 percent each of invert syrup, spices, and dehydrated onion, and less than 2 percent each of lactic acid, citric acid, silicon dioxide, malic acid, modified food starch, pectin, and xanthan gum.
The applicable subheading for the Black Pepper EX 250 will be 0904.12.0000, Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS), which provides for pepper of the genus Piper…crushed or ground. The rate of duty will be free.
The applicable subheading for the Pepper Garlic Blend BS 220, Tuscan Roasted Garlic & Herb WI 210, and Three Pepper Blend BS 80 with Mesquite & Papain will be 2103.90.8000, HTSUS, which provides for mixed condiments and mixed seasonings…other. The rate of duty will be 6.4 percent ad valorem.
Duty rates are provided for your convenience and are subject to change. The text of the most recent HTSUS and the accompanying duty rates are provided on World Wide Web at http://www.usitc.gov/tata/hts/.
This merchandise is subject to The Public Health Security and Bioterrorism Preparedness and Response Act of 2002 (The Bioterrorism Act), which is regulated by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Information on the Bioterrorism Act can be obtained by calling FDA at 301-575-0156, or at the Web site www.fda.gov/oc/bioterrorism/bioact.html.
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 Stanley Hopard at 646-733-3029.
Sincerely,
Robert B. Swierupski
Director,
National Commodity
Specialist Division