Petition Filed for New AD/CV Duties on Ripe Olives From Spain
The Coalition for Fair Trade in Ripe Olives filed a petition on June 21 with the Commerce Department and the International Trade Commission requesting new antidumping and countervailing duties on ripe olives from Spain. Commerce will now decide whether to begin AD/CVD investigations on ripe olives, which are a processed product, typically black in color, used on pizzas, sandwiches and salads.
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"US domestic processors invented the ripe olive product, but without relief from unfairly traded imports the US industry will disappear," the petition said. "Low-priced Spanish imports have already taken a significant majority of the US institutional (food service) market for ripe olives, and are now taking valuable portions of the US consumer (retail) market for ripe olives," it said. "If the US processors do not raise prices, neither they nor the growers can make enough money to survive." Only two U.S. processors remain, down from about 20 in 1965, both of which are members of the coalition that filed the petition.
Proposed Scope
The petition proposes the following scope for the investigations:
The products covered by this Petition are certain processed olives, usually referred to as “ripe olives.” The subject merchandise includes all colors of olives; all shapes and sizes of olives, whether pitted or not pitted, and whether whole, sliced, chopped, minced, wedged, broken, or otherwise reduced in size; all types of packaging, whether for consumer (retail) or institutional (food service) sale, and whether canned or packaged in glass, metal, plastic, multi-layered airtight containers (including pouches), or otherwise; and all manners of preparation and preservation, whether low acid or acidified, stuffed or not stuffed, with or without flavoring and/or saline solution, and including in ambient, refrigerated or frozen conditions.
Included are all ripe olives processed in Spain, regardless of the origin of the olives or the location of packaging. Excluded from the scope are: (1) “Spanish-style” and other similar olives that have been processed by being both fermented and briefly cured in an alkaline solution; (2) olives that have been processed by fermentation only; and (3) provisionally prepared olives unsuitable for immediate consumption (currently classifiable in subheading 0711.20 of the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS)).
The merchandise subject to this petition is currently classifiable under subheadings 2005.70.0230, 2005.70.0260, 2005.70.0430, 2005.70.0460, 2005.70.5030, 2005.70.5060, 2005.70.6020, 2005.70.6030, 2005.70.6050, 2005.70.6060, 2005.70.6070, 2005.70.7000, 2005.70.7510, 2005.70.7515, 2005.70.7520 and 2005.70.7525 HTSUS. Subject merchandise may also be imported under subheadings 2005.70.0600, 2005.70.0800, 2005.70.1200, 2005.70.1600, 2005.70.1800, 2005.70.2300, 2005.70.2510, 2005.70.2520, 2005.70.2530, 2005.70.2540, 2005.70.2550, 2005.70.2560, 2005.70.9100, 2005.70.9300 and 2005.70.9700. Although HTSUS subheadings are provided for convenience and U.S. Customs purposes, they do not define the scope of the petition; rather, the written description of the subject merchandise is dispositive.
Commerce Accepting Comments on Petition Support
The Commerce Department is accepting comments on domestic industry support for the petitions to determine whether the petitions meet the dual requirements of support by domestic producers or workers accounting for (1) at least 25% of the total production of the domestic-like product and (2) more than 50% of the production of the domestic-like product produced by that portion of the industry expressing support for, or opposition to, the petition. If the petitions meet these requirements, among others, Commerce will initiate antidumping and countervailing duty investigations. Comments are due by July 11.
Email ITTNews@warren-news.com for a copy of the petition.