CBP Finds AD Evasion by Wipes Company
CBP issued an Enforce and Protect Act determination, finding Guy and O'Neill Inc. (GON) evaded antidumping duties by transshipping xanthan gum from China through Israel, according to a recent agency release.
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Food products company CP Kelco initially filed the EAPA allegation against GON in August 2023, claiming that GON evaded the AD order on xanthan gum from China (A-570-985) by importing Chinese-origin xanthan gum via transshipment through Israel using the supplier Dormeco. An official with CP Kelco said xanthan gum is manufactured in four countries: Austria, France, China and the U.S. Since the xanthan gum imported by GON couldn't have been produced in Israel, it likely was produced in China, CP Kelco reasoned, according to the CBP filing.
CP Kelco's allegation provided screenshots of Dormeco’s website showing that it is a distributor, not a manufacturer of xanthan gum, and that its supplier is Chinese producer, Deosan Biochemicals. Upon receipt of the allegation, CBP initiated an EAPA investigation in December 2023 and enacted interim measures against GON (see 2404050040).
GON acknowledged that the xanthan gum that it imported was of Chinese origin and submitted corrected 7501 Entry Summary Forms for the shipments in question prior to the investigation. GON claimed that it believed its supplier, Dormeco, to be a manufacturer, not a distributor, of xanthan gum and thus had not intentionally evaded antidumping laws. However, CBP responded that "since EAPA is a strict liability statute, regardless of whether GON intended to evade the order, its acknowledgment in [responses to CBP] constitutes substantial evidence of evasion."
CBP said it would suspend or continue to suspend the entries covered by this investigation, until instructed to liquidate. Also, for those entries previously extended in accordance with interim measures, CBP said it would rate adjust and change those entries to type 03 and continue suspension until instructed to liquidate the entries.
CBP also said it would continue to evaluate GON’s continuous bonds in accordance with agency policies.