OT:RR:NC:N3:136
Kayla Owens
Stein Shostak Shostak Pollack & O'Hara
865 S. Figueroa St., Suite 1388 Los Angeles, CA 90017
RE: The country of origin of Soothing Powder Lotion
Dear Ms. Owens:
In your letter dated July 26, 2023, on behalf of your client, Evereden (Shanghai) Trading Co., Ltd., you requested a country of origin ruling on Soothing Powder Lotion.
The subject product is a Soothing Powder Lotion, which is formulated and processed in the United States using raw materials sourced from various countries. The Soothing Powder Lotion is produced in the United States, by your client’s sister company, and then shipped to China in bulk containers for filling and retail packaging before exportation.
In your submission, you cite several rulings where Customs determined that the goods remained products of the country in which: (1) the method of processing involved mixing and blending and processing of the raw ingredients, taking both foreign and domestic inputs to create the bulk product, which resulted in a substantial transformation of the raw materials, and (2) the mixed and prepared bulk material did not undergo a change in name, character, or use in China in the process of filling and retail packaging.
You state that when the raw materials are combined and processed in the United States, they are substantially transformed to create a new product with a distinctive name, character, and use. The individual ingredients lose their identity and become an integral part of the new product. The product does not change, and no ingredients are added in China.
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."
The test for determining whether a substantial transformation will occur is whether an article emerges from a process with a new name, character or use, different from that possessed by the article prior to processing. See Texas Instruments Inc. v. United States, 69 C.C.P.A. 151 (1982).
This determination is based on the totality of the evidence. See National Hand Tool Corp. v. United States, 16 C.I.T. 308 (1992), aff'd, 989 F.2d 1201 (Fed. Cir. 1993).
With respect to the subject product, we have determined that the filling and packaging process in China is merely a minor one that leaves the identity of the subject product intact; therefore, a substantial transformation does not occur. The production process in the United States using raw materials sourced from various countries, results in a substantial transformation of the raw materials into an article with a new name, character and use. Therefore, in our opinion, the country of origin for the subject product is the United States.
This merchandise may be subject to the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act and/or The Public Health Security and Bioterrorism Preparedness and Response Act of 2002 (The Bioterrorism Act), which are administered by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Information on the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, as well as The Bioterrorism Act, can be obtained by calling the FDA at 1-888-463-6332, or by visiting their website at www.fda.gov.
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 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, please contact National Import Specialist Nuccio Fera at [email protected].
Sincerely,
Steven A. Mack
Director
National Commodity Specialist Division