MAR-2:OT:RR:NC:N5:231
Mr. Richard Garcia
R Garcia International
P.O. Box 4994
Rio Rico, AZ 85648
RE: The Country of Origin of Chilled Pasteurized Crabmeat
Dear Mr. Garcia:
This is in response to your letter, dated October 31, 2023, requesting a ruling on behalf of your client, Direct Source Seafood LLC (Bellevue, WA) regarding the country of origin of Chilled Pasteurized Crabmeat for marking purposes and for applying the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement.
You have outlined a scenario in which whole crab with the scientific name Chionoecets Angulatus will be harvested on Russian-flagged vessels in the Russian Exclusive Economic Zone, butchered to sections, cleaned, cooked, sorted, packed in freezing baskets, brine frozen, glazed, packed in cartons, stored, and transported via a bonded warehouse in South Korea to Mexico. In Mexico, the crabmeat will be removed from the shells, separated by part according to shoulder, tip and joint, treated with pyrophosphate powder, pasteurized, wrapped in a shrinkable sleeve, dipped in hot water for film shrinkage, pre-cooled, checked for labeling, packed in hermetically sealed 8 oz. and 16 oz. pull-top aluminum-lidded plastic containers, and then packed into master cases for shipping to the United States. The crabmeat will be sold to food service distributors or consumers via retail stores.
You seek a determination as to the country of origin of the above-described product.
The marking statute, section 304, Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (19 U.S.C. 1304), provides that, unless excepted, every article of foreign origin (or its container) imported into the U.S. shall be marked in a conspicuous place as legibly, indelibly and permanently as the nature of the article (or its container) will permit, in such a manner as to indicate to the ultimate purchaser in the U.S. the English name of the country of origin of the article.
The “country of origin” is defined in 19 CFR 134.1(b) as “the country of manufacture, production, or growth of any article of foreign origin entering the United States. Further work or material added to an article in another country must effect a substantial transformation in order to render such other country the ‘country of origin’ within the meaning of this part; however, for a good of a NAFTA or USMCA country, the marking rules set forth in part 102 of this chapter (hereinafter referred to as the part 102 Rules) will determine the country of origin.”
Pursuant to section 102.0, interim regulations, related to the marking rules, tariff-rate quotas, and other USMCA provisions, published in the Federal Register on July 6, 2021 (86 FR 35566), the rules set forth in §§102.1 through 102.18 and 102.20 determine the country of origin for marking purposes with respect to goods imported from Canada and Mexico. Section 102.11 provides a required hierarchy for determining the country of origin of a good for marking purposes, with the exception of textile goods which are subject to the provisions of 19 C.F.R. §102.21. See 19 C.F.R. §102.11.
Applied in sequential order, 19 CFR Part 102.11(a) provides that the country of origin of a good is the country in which:
(1) The good is wholly obtained or produced;
(2) The good is produced exclusively from domestic materials, or
(3) Each foreign material incorporated in that good undergoes an applicable change in tariff classification set out in Part 102.20 and satisfies any other applicable requirements of that section, and all other applicable requirements of these rules are satisfied.
The Chilled Pasteurized Crabmeat is neither “wholly obtained or produced” nor “produced exclusively from domestic materials.” Therefore, paragraphs (a)(1) and (a)(2) cannot be used to determine the country of origin of the Chilled Pasteurized Crabmeat, and paragraph (a)(3) must next be applied to determine the origin of the finished article.
Chilled Pasteurized Crabmeat is classified in subheading 1605.10.2090 of the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS). Crabmeat is classified in subheading 0306.14.2000, HTSUS. The applicable tariff shift rule found in section 102.20(a) provides as follows: HTSUS Tariff Shift and/or other requirements 1605 ........A change to headings 1601 through 1605 from any other chapter. Since the Chilled Pasteurized Crabmeat changes from another chapter when processed, the requisite tariff shift is met in this case. Accordingly, the country of origin of the Chilled Pasteurized Crabmeat for marking purposes is Mexico.
The holding set forth above applies only to the specific factual situation and merchandise description as identified in the ruling request. This position is clearly set forth in Title 19, Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), Section 177.9(b)(1). This section states that a ruling letter is issued on the assumption that all of the information furnished in the ruling letter, whether directly, by reference, or by implication, is accurate and complete in every material respect. In the event that the facts are modified in any way, or if the goods do not conform to these facts at time of importation, you should bring this to the attention of U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and submit a request for a new ruling in accordance with 19 CFR 177.2. Additionally, we note that the material facts described in the foregoing ruling may be subject to periodic verification by CBP.
Please note that seafood is subject to the Mandatory Country of Origin Labeling (COOL) requirements administered by the USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS). We advise you to check with that agency for their further guidance on your scenario. Contact information for AMS is as follows:
USDA-AMS-LS-SAT
Room 2607-S, Stop 0254
1400 Independence Avenue, SW
Washington, DC 20250-0254
Tel. 202.720.4486
Website: www.ams.usda.gov/COOL
Email address for inquiries: [email protected]
This ruling is being issued under the provisions of Part 177 of the Customs and Border Protection Regulations (19 C.F.R. 177).
A copy of the ruling or control number indicated above should be provided with entry documents filed at the time this merchandise is imported. If you have any questions regarding the ruling, contact National Import Specialist Ekeng Manczuk at [email protected].
Sincerely,
Steven A. Mack
Director
National Commodity Specialist Division