COUNTRY OF ORIGIN MARKING OF BLENDED MEXICAN AND DOMESTIC CRABMEAT; ARTICLE 509

N204142 March 1, 2012 MAR-2 RR:NC:N2:231 CATEGORY: MARKING Mr. Gary Bauer Pontchartrain Blue Crab Inc. 38327 Salt Bayou Road Slidell, Louisiana 70461 RE: COUNTRY OF ORIGIN MARKING OF BLENDED MEXICAN AND DOMESTIC CRABMEAT; ARTICLE 509 Dear Mr. Bauer: This is in response to your letter dated February 10, 2012, requesting a ruling on the country of origin status and marking requirements applicable to certain crabmeat that will be mixed and packaged in the United States using a combination of pre-existing foreign (Mexican) and domestic (U.S.) product. You have outlined a scenario in which: Crabs will be wild-caught in Mexican waters. In Mexico, the crabs will be cooked and then the meat will be hand picked. The resulting crabmeat will then be packaged (in containers labeled “Product of Mexico”) and exported to the United States. Crabs will also be wild-caught in U.S. waters. In the United States, the crabs will be cooked, the meat will be hand picked, and the resulting crabmeat will be packaged into containers labeled “Product of USA.” At a processing facility in the United States, the respective packaged crabmeats described in the preceding two paragraphs will be opened and intermixed by hand. You state that “the proportions may vary from 75/25 domestic to 75/25 foreign.” The mixed product will then be repackaged for sale. You seek advice as to the proper country-of-origin labeling for the repackaged Mexican/U.S. mixture. 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. Pursuant to 19 CFR Section 134.1(b), the country of origin is the country of manufacture, production or growth of any article of foreign origin entering the U.S. Further work or material added to a foreign article in the United States must effect a substantial transformation in order to render the final product a good of the U.S. However, for a good of a NAFTA country, the NAFTA Marking Rules (set forth in 19 CFR Part 102) will determine the country of origin. In the outlined scenario, the live crabs originate within the NAFTA territory (in Mexico and the United States), and all subsequent processing also takes place within the NAFTA territory (in those same two countries). Therefore, the NAFTA marking rules govern here. Applying the NAFTA Marking Rules set forth in Part 102 of the regulations to the facts of this case, we find that the finished, repackaged crabmeat blend is a good of Mexico and the United States. The Mexican crabmeat does not undergo an applicable change in tariff classification set out in Section 102.20 (d) by virtue of the mixing and repackaging operation. Crabmeat, which in your scenario originates in two different countries, is the single material that imparts the essential character of the finished (blended) good. The applicable section of the regulations, 102.11 (b) (1), provides that in this circumstance the country of origin of the good is the country or countries of origin of such material. Section 134.1 (d) (2) of the regulations states that when an imported good of a NAFTA country undergoes processing that does not result in one of the changes prescribed in the NAFTA Marking Rules as effecting a change in the article’s country of origin, the consumer purchasing the article after processing will be regarded as the “ultimate purchaser.” Accordingly, in order to satisfy 19 U.S.C. 1304, each immediate container of the finished, blended product must be marked to indicate its foreign (Mexican) content. Thus, marking such as “Blended Product Containing Crabmeat Produced in Mexico” would suffice for this purpose. And, although pursuant to 19 U.S.C. 1304 U.S. Customs & Border Protection (CBP) does not require marking for U.S.-origin components, labeling such as “Product of Mexico and the USA” or “Blended Product of Mexico and the USA” would also be acceptable to CBP. Please note, however, that labeling consisting of or including the phrase “Product of USA” is under the jurisdiction of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), which may be contacted for advice at 6th & Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20580. Please note also that since the Mexican crabmeat initially entering the United States is intended to be subsequently processed and repackaged, the certification procedures set forth in 19 CFR 134.25 should be followed. 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 Nathan Rosenstein at 646-733-3030. Sincerely, Thomas J. Russo Director, National Commodity Specialist Division