MAR-2 OT:RR:NC:N2:231
Mr. Christopher Berliner
Importers Service Corporation
65 Brunswick Avenue
Edison, NJ 08817
RE: Country of Origin for Tragacanth Gum
Dear Mr. Berliner:
This is in response to your letter dated August 27, 2018 requesting a country of origin determination for Tragacanth Gum imported from Germany.
You have outlined a scenario in which your supplier Aromaplant GmbH procures raw Tragacanth gum from three different source countries which are Pakistan, Afghanistan and Turkey. The raw material is transported into Germany where it undergoes a vacuum drying process that drops the moisture content to a level that allows for grinding. Subsequently, the material is cleaned to remove impurities, pulverized to produce a fine powder and then blended to customer specification. The ensuing product is then thermally treated to eliminate pathogens prior to being packed for importation in 25 kilogram bags. You state that upon receipt of the finished goods, your company will test, blend (to customer specification) and repack the product for sale in the same aforementioned size. Tragacanth gum is utilized as a thickener, suspension agent, emulsifier or excipient. The target market for this product is the food, personal care and pharmaceutical industries.
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.
As provided in section 134.41(b), Customs Regulations (19 CFR 134.41(b)), the country of origin marking is considered conspicuous if the ultimate purchaser in the U.S. is able to find the marking easily and read it without strain.
With regard to the permanency of a marking, section 134.41(a), Customs Regulations (19 CFR 134.41(a)), provides that as a general rule marking requirements are best met by marking worked into the article at the time of manufacture. For example, it is suggested that the country of origin on metal articles be die sunk, molded in, or etched. However, section 134.44, Customs Regulations (19 CFR 134.44), generally provides that any marking that is sufficiently permanent so that it will remain on the article until it reaches the ultimate purchaser unless deliberately removed is acceptable.
Part 134, CBP Regulations (19 C.F.R. §134) implements the country of origin marking requirements of 19 U.S.C. §1304. 19 C.F.R. §134.1(b) defines “country of origin” as:
[T]he 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 [the marking regulations]…
A substantial transformation occurs when an article emerges from a process with a new name, character or use different from that possessed by the article prior to processing. United States v. Gibson-Thomsen Co., Inc., 27 CCPA 267, C.A.D. 98 (1940); National Hand Tool Corp. v. United States, 16 CIT 308 (1992), aff’d, 989 F. 2d 1201 (Fed. Cir. 1993). However, if the manufacturing or combining process is merely a minor one that leaves the identity of the article intact, a substantial transformation has not occurred. Uniroyal, Inc. v. United States, 3 CIT 220, 542 F. Supp. 1026, 1029 (1982), aff’d, 702 F.2d 1022 (Fed. Cir. 1983).
This office finds that the Tragacanth gum is substantially transformed as a result of the German processing, and that therefore the country of origin of the Tragacanth gum now in powder form as imported into the United States is Germany. The packages should be marked accordingly, e.g., “Product of Germany.”
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 CFR Part 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 Ekeng Manczuk at [email protected].
Sincerely,
Steven A. Mack
Director
National Commodity Specialist Division