MAR-2 OT:RR:NC:N2:231
Mr. David Plantz
Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney PC
227 West Trade Street
Suite No. 1920
Charlotte, NC 28202
RE: COUNTRY OF ORIGIN MARKING OF FROZEN TILAPIA; ARTICLE 509
Dear Mr. Plantz:
This is in response to your letter dated August 9, 2017 on behalf of your client Regal Springs Trading (Miramar, Florida) requesting a ruling on whether the proposed markings “Product of North America” including also “Raised in Mexico” and “Product of Mexico” are acceptable country of origin markings for Frozen Tilapia. An image of the front and back panel of the package and artwork were submitted with your letter for review.
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. Part 134, Customs Regulations (19 CFR Part 134) implements the country of origin marking requirements and exceptions of 19 U.S.C. 1304.
The country of origin marking requirements for a “good of a NAFTA country” are also determined in accordance with Annex 311 of the North American Free Trade Agreement (“NAFTA”), as implemented by section 207 of the North American Free Trade Agreement Implementation Act (Pub. L. 103-182, 107 Stat 2057) (December 8, 1993) and the appropriate Customs Regulations. The Marking Rules used for determining whether a good is a good of a NAFTA country are contained in Part 102, Customs Regulations. The marking requirements of these goods are set forth in Part 134, Customs Regulations.
Section 134.45(a)(2) of the regulations, provides that “a good of a NAFTA country may be marked with the name of the country of origin in English, French or Spanish. Section 134.1(g) of the regulations, defines a “good of a NAFTA country” as an article for which the country of origin is Canada, Mexico or the United States as determined under the NAFTA Marking Rules.
Section 134.46, Customs Regulations (19 CFR 134.46), deals with cases in which the words “United States,” or “American,” the letters “U.S.A.,” any variation of such words or letters, or the name of any city or locality in the United States, or the name of any foreign country or locality other than the country or locality in which the article was manufactured or produced, appears on an imported article or its container, and those words, letters or names may mislead or deceive the ultimate purchaser as to the actual country of origin. In such a case, there shall appear, legibly and permanently, in close proximity to such words, letters, or name, and in at least a comparable size, the name of the country of origin preceded by “Made in,” “Product of,” or other words of similar meaning.
In order to satisfy the close proximity requirement, the country of origin marking must generally appear on the same side(s) or surface(s) in which the name or locality other than the actual country of origin appears.
On the front panel of the packaging, "Product of North America" appears on the front of the package under the brand name and product with the much smaller “Sustainably Raised In Mexico” at the bottom of the printed area. The term “Product of Mexico” appears on the other side of the packaging under the list of ingredients. In this case, the opinion of this office is that the phrase "Product of North America" may confuse the ultimate purchaser as to the origin of the product. North America includes, inter alia, the United States, and this fact may lead an ultimate purchaser to conclude that while the fish is from Mexico, it is a product of the United States. As such, we find that the proposed marking is not an acceptable country of origin marking for the frozen tilapia. The following markings would properly indicate the country of origin: "Product of Mexico" or “Farm Raised in Mexico.”
This ruling is being issued under the provisions of Part 181 of the Customs Regulations (19 CFR Part 181).
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 Ekeng Manczuk at [email protected]
Sincerely,
Steven A. Mack
Director
National Commodity Specialist Division