N331632

N331632 April 19, 2023 CLA-2-19:OT:RR:NC:N2:N232 CATEGORY: Classification; Country of Origin; Marking; Trade Programs TARIFF NO.: 1904.20.1000; 1904.20.9000 Ilana Green Fresh Hemp Foods Ltd. 69 Eagle Drive Winnipeg R2R 1V4 Canada RE: The classification, country of origin, marking and eligibility of the United States- Mexico-Canada Trade Agreement (USMCA) for “Super seed cereal – Maple Brown Sugar” from Canada Dear Ms. Green: This is in response to your letter dated March 17, 2023, requesting a ruling on the classification, country of origin, marking and the eligibility of the USMCA on “Super seed cereal - Maple Brown Sugar.” An ingredients breakdown, a cost breakdown, and a photo of the product were included with your inquiry. The subject merchandise, “Super seed cereal – Maple Brown Sugar” is described as a dry blend composed of quick oats, hemp hearts, brown sugar, flaxseeds, maple flakes, ground cinnamon, and salt. The finished product will be packed in individual sachets, 5 single serving sachets in a master pouch for retail sale. The user is instructed to add water to the product and heat in the microwave for one minute. Classification: The applicable subheading for the “Super seed cereal – Maple Brown Sugar” if in airtight containers, will be 1904.20.1000, Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS), which provides for Prepared foods obtained from unroasted cereal flakes or from mixtures of unroasted cereal flakes and roasted cereal flakes or swelled cereals: In airtight containers and not containing apricots, citrus fruits, peaches or pears. The rate of duty will be 5.6 percent ad valorem. The applicable subheading for the “Super seed cereal – Maple Brown Sugar” if the containers are not airtight, will be 1904.20.9000, HTSUS, which provides for Prepared foods obtained from unroasted cereal flakes or from mixtures of unroasted cereal flakes and roasted cereal flakes or swelled cereals: Other. The rate of duty will be 14.9 percent ad valorem. Country of Origin Marking 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. Applied in sequential order, the required hierarchy establishes that: (a) 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 section 102.20 and satisfies any other applicable requirements of that section, and all other requirements of these rules are satisfied. You suggest the following scenarios for importation of this merchandise, asking for advice on each one. Scenario 1: The quick oats, hemp hearts, flaxseed and maple flakes are of Canadian origin. The brown sugar is a product of Brazil. The ground cinnamon is a product of Vietnam. The salt is of US origin. The subject merchandise is neither “wholly obtained or produced” nor “produced exclusively from domestic materials.” Therefore, Sections 102.11(a)(1) and 102.11(a)(2) do not apply to the facts presented in this case because the “Super seed cereal – Maple Brown Sugar” is neither wholly obtained nor produced exclusively from “domestic” (Canada, in this case) materials. The applicable tariff shift requirement in section 102.20 for the “Super seed cereal – Maple Brown Sugar” of subheading 1904.20, HTSUS, consists of the following: A change to subheading 1904.20 from any other heading. Because the foreign materials (brown sugar, ground cinnamon and salt) contained in the “Super seed cereal – Maple Brown Sugar” are classified in subheadings outside of subheading 1904.20, the tariff shift rule in 19 C.F.R. § 102.20 is met. Therefore, in accordance with 19 C.F.R. § 102.11(a)(3), the country of origin for “Super seed cereal – Plain” for marking purposes is Canada. Scenario 2: The quick oats, hemp hearts, and flaxseed are products of Canada. The maple flakes and salt are products of the US. The brown sugar is a product of Brazil. The ground cinnamon is a product of Vietnam. The subject merchandise is neither “wholly obtained or produced” nor “produced exclusively from domestic materials.” Therefore, Sections 102.11(a)(1) and 102.11(a)(2) do not apply to the facts presented in this case because the “Super seed cereal – Maple Brown Sugar” is neither wholly obtained nor produced exclusively from “domestic” (Canada, in this case) materials. The applicable tariff shift requirement in section 102.20 for the “Super seed cereal – Maple Brown Sugar” of subheading 1904.20, HTSUS, consists of the following: A change to subheading 1904.20 from any other heading. Because the foreign materials (maple flakes, salt, brown sugar and ground cinnamon) contained in the “Super seed cereal – Maple Brown Sugar” are classified in subheadings outside of subheading 1904.20, the tariff shift rule in 19 C.F.R. § 102.20 is met. Therefore, in accordance with 19 C.F.R. § 102.11(a)(3), the country of origin for “Super seed cereal – Plain” for marking purposes is Canada. Scenario 3: The quick oats and salt are products of the US. The hemp hearts, flaxseeds, and maple flakes are of products of Canada. The brown sugar is a product of Brazil. The ground cinnamon is a product of Vietnam. Scenario 4: The quick oats and maple flakes are products of the US. The hemp hearts and flaxseed are products of Canada. The brown sugar is a product of Brazil. The ground cinnamon is a product of Vietnam. In scenario 3 and scenario 4, the subject merchandise is neither “wholly obtained or produced” nor “produced exclusively from domestic materials.” Therefore, Sections 102.11(a)(1) and 102.11(a)(2) do not apply to the facts presented in this case because the “Super seed cereal – Maple Brown Sugar” is neither wholly obtained nor produced exclusively from “domestic” (Canada, in this case) materials. The applicable tariff shift requirement in section 102.20 for the “Super seed cereal – Maple Brown Sugar” of subheading 1904.20, HTSUS, consists of the following: A change to subheading 1904.20 from any other heading. The “Super seed cereal – Maple Brown Sugar” does not meet the tariff shift because the foreign materials, quick oats (Product of U.S.A.), are also classified under heading 1904. As a result, Part 102.11(a) does not apply. Section 102.11(b) states, in relevant part: Except for a good that is specifically described in the Harmonized System as a set, or is classified as a set pursuant t