CLA-2-39:R:N6:221 816135
Mr. Edward J. Fasulo
Devro Inc.
Southside Avenue
P.O. Box 858
Somerville, NJ 08876-0858
RE: The tariff classification of sausage casings from Scotland.
Dear Mr. Fasulo:
In your letter dated October 13, 1995, you requested a tariff classification ruling.
The sausage casings are made from collagen. Some of the casings have been hardened with glutaraldehyde. Others have had their tensile strength increased using different technology.
The applicable subheading for the sausage casings which have been hardened with glutaraldehyde will be 3917.10.6000, Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTS), which provides for tubes, pipes and hoses and fittings therefor, of plastics...artificial guts (sausage casings) of hardened protein or of cellulosic plastics materials...of collagen. This provision is free of duty.
Your inquiry does not provide enough information for us to give a classification ruling on the collagen casings which have been strengthened using other technology. Your request for a classification ruling should include a complete description of the alternate curing process, as well as data to support the claim that this process results in a hardened protein. For example, please submit any chemical data which can prove that crosslinks have been created between functional groups of adjacent amino acids, or that crosslinks have been created on a supra-molecular level between fibrils and fibers.
This ruling is being issued under the provisions of Section 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 Joan Mazzola at 212-466-5580.
Sincerely,
Roger J. Silvestri
Director
National Commodity
Specialist Division