HQ 0732709 - Country of origin marking of articles imported in unsealed disposable retail containers - United States International Trade Commision Rulings

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HQ 732709

February 23, 1990

MAR-2-05 CO:R:C:V 732709 EAB

CATEGORY: MARKING

Richard L. Burrell, Vice President Finance R.G. Barry Corporation
P.O. Box 129
Columbus, OH 43216

RE: Country of origin marking of articles imported in unsealed disposable retail containers

Dear Mr. Burrell:

This is in reply to your September 1, 1989, letter request- ing a ruling on country of origin marking requirements for foot- wear imported into the U.S. in plastic packaging.

FACTS:

The sample submitted consists of a pair of slippers packaged in an unsealed translucent, colorless plastic bag with a plastic handle and hook at the top and a snap opening on the back. The slippers may be viewed while in the package or by unsnapping the bag and removing them. On the front of the bag is the printed phrase "Sold by 'Sears, Roebuck and Co.', Chicago, IL 69684." Examination of the article itself reveals a pair of woman's house slippers made of a fabric upper and a hard rubber sole. The sole of each slipper is marked "Handcrafted in Mexico from U.S. Materials" directly above washing instructions and the size marking. Both the fabric upper and the rubber sole are distinctly the products of separate manufacturing processes using machinery. In particular, the fabric upper appears to consist of, primarily, an outer layer of terry cloth. This outer layer is uniformly stitched to an inner layer of fabric. The sole is plainly the product of a molding process, injection or otherwise. The upper and lower are combined by, at a minimum, stitching that must drive a threaded needle through not only two layers of fabric but an approximate 0.125 inch thick piece of hard rubber, and the stitching is uniform in length and location within the entire perimeter of the sole.

ISSUES:
a) Is the country of origin marking on the bottom of the slippers acceptable, or must the country of origin be reprinted on the bag; b) is the language "Handcrafted in Mexico from U.S. Materials" acceptable marking?

LAW AND ANALYSIS:
a) Section 304 of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (19 U.S.C. 1304), provides that every article of foreign origin (or its container) imported into the U.S. shall be marked in a con- spicuous place as legibly, indelibly and permanently as the na- ture of the article (or 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 primary pur- pose of the country of origin marking statute is to "mark the goods so that at the time of purchase the ultimate purchaser may, by knowing where the goods were produced, be able to buy or refuse to buy the product, if such marking should influence his will." United States v. Friedlaender & Co., 27 CCPA 297 (1940); National Juice Products Association v. United States, 10 CIT 48 (1986).

Part 134, Customs Regulations (19 CFR Part 134) implements the statutory country of origin marking requirements. Pursuant to 19 CFR 134.24(d)(3), if the article is in an unsealed dispos- able container that is normally opened by the ultimate purchaser prior to purchase, only the article need be marked.

Customs finds that the submitted sample consists of a con- tainer that normally would be opened by the ultimate purchaser, since it is easily snapped open and shut, thereby enabling the ultimate purchaser to remove the article for closer examination. Although in such circumstances generally only the article must be marked to indicate its country of origin, this is not the case where a U.S. address is on the container.

Pursuant to 19 CFR 134.46, in any case in which the name of any city in the U.S. appears on an imported article or its container, there shall appear, legibly and permanently, in close proximity to such 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 view of the U.S. address printed on the sample container, the requirements of this section apply. Since the country of origin marking on the bottom of the slippers is not in close proximity to the U.S. address, another country of origin marking which meets the requirements of 19 CFR 134.46 must appear on the bag.
b) Although Customs has ruled that "Handcrafted in Mexico" sufficiently indicated the country of origin of a product, see Headquarters Ruling Letter HQ 732689, December 7, 1989, the lan- guage must be accurate. Section 11.13, Customs Regulations (19 CFR 11.13), provides that articles (or their containers) which bear false designations of origin, or false descriptions or representations, including words or other symbols tending false- ly to describe or represent the articles, are prohibited impor- tation under 15 U.S.C. 1124, 1125 and other provisions of law, and shall be detained.

We find certain regulations of the Indian Arts and Crafts Board concerning the use of certificates identifying genuine handicrafts to be instructive in determining if the use of the word "handcrafted" is accurate in this case. One of the condi- tions of eligibility for the attachment of such a certificate is that the object be produced by Indian craftsmen "with the help of only such devices as allow the manual skill of the maker to condition the shape and design of each individual product," 25 CFR 308.3a.

Customs finds that the word "Handcrafted" tends falsely to describe the article. Both the upper and sole are clearly the products of separate manufacturing processes using machinery. The uniform stitching of the outer layer of the upper to the in- ner layer does not present an article that is fashioned chiefly by hand. The sole is plainly the product of a molding process, injection or otherwise. The upper and lower are combined by stitching that is uniform in length and location within the en- tire perimeter of the sole of each slipper. On the whole, we find that the article is not fashioned totally or chiefly by hand, especially with manual skill, even though skilled labor may be employed in operating the machinery that makes the components and combines them into the finished article.

HOLDING:

Imported house slippers packaged in an unsealed disposable container that is normally opened by the ultimate purchaser prior to purchase must be marked to indicate their country of origin. Where the name of a U.S. city appears on such packag- ing, the packaging also must be marked "Made in [country]," or "Product of [country]," or other words of similar meaning.

For purposes of this ruling only, "Handcrafted" tends falsely to describe or represent the article, and is, therefore, not in compliance with the marking requirements of 19 CFR 11.13.

Sincerely,

Marvin M. Amernick, Chief

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