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CSMS #50806094 - Initiation of Antidumping Duty Investigations: Lemon Juice from Brazil and South Africa

On January 19, 2022, the Department of Commerce (Commerce) initiated its less-than-fair-value duty investigations on “Lemon Juice from Brazil and South Africa” (Initiation Notice).  These investigations have been assigned the following case numbers: A-351-858 (Brazil) and A-791-827 (South Africa).

The Scope of Merchandise covered by these investigations reads as follows:

The product covered by these investigations is certain lemon juice.  Lemon juice is covered:  (1) with or without addition of preservatives, sugar, or other sweeteners; (2) regardless of the GPL (grams per liter of citric acid) level of concentration, brix level, brix/acid ratio, pulp content, clarity; (3) regardless of the grade, horticulture method (e.g., organic or not), processed form (e.g., frozen or not-from-concentrate), the size of the container in which packed, or the method of packing; and (4) regardless of the U.S. Department of Agriculture Food and Drug Administration (FDA) standard of identity (as defined under 19 CFR 146.114 et seq.) (i.e., whether or not the lemon juice meets an FDA standard of identity).

Excluded from the scope are: (1) lemon juice at any level of concentration packed in retail-sized containers ready for sale to consumers; and (2) beverage products, such as lemonade, that contain 20 percent or less lemon juice as an ingredient by actual volume.  “Retail-sized containers” are defined as lemon juice products sold in ready-for-sale packaging (e.g., clearly visible branding, nutritional facts listed, etc.) containing up to 128 ounces of lemon juice by actual volume.

The scope also includes certain lemon juice that is blended with certain lemon juice from sources not subject to these investigations.  Only the subject lemon juice component of such blended merchandise is covered by the scope of these investigations.  Blended lemon juice is defined as certain lemon juice with two distinct component parts of differing country(s) of origin mixed together to form certain lemon juice where the component parts are no longer individually distinguishable.

The product subject to these investigations is currently classifiable under subheadings 2009.31.4000, 2009.31.6020, 2009.31.6040, 2009.39.6020, and 2009.39.6040 of the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS).  Although the HTSUS subheadings are provided for convenience and customs purposes, the written description of the scope of these investigations is dispositive.

Requirements for Submitting Comments on the Scope of the Investigations: Please be sure to comply with all three requirements established below.

Deadline for Submitting Comments:

As announced in the Initiation Notice, Commerce is setting aside a period for interested parties to raise issues regarding product coverage (scope).  The period for scope comments is intended to provide Commerce with ample opportunity to consider all comments and to consult with parties prior to the issuance of the preliminary determinations, as appropriate.  If scope comments include factual information (see 19 CFR 351.102(b)(21)), all such factual information should be limited to public information.  Commerce requests that all such comments be filed by 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time (ET) on February 8, 2022, which is 20 calendar days from the signature date of this notice.  Any rebuttal comments, which may include factual information, must be filed by 5:00 p.m. ET on February 18, 2022, which is 10 calendar days after the initial comments deadline.  Commerce requests that any factual information the parties consider relevant to the scope of the investigations be submitted during this time period.  However, if a party subsequently finds that additional factual information pertaining to the scope of the investigations may be relevant, the party may contact Commerce and request permission to submit the additional information.  All such comments must be filed on the records of each of the concurrent AD investigations identified above.

Required Entry of Appearance:

Parties wishing to participate in this segment and be included on the public service list must file a letter of appearance.  Section 351.103(d)(1) of Commerce’s regulations states that “with the exception of a petitioner filing a petition in an investigation, to be included on the public service list for a particular segment, each interested party must file a letter of appearance.” The letter of appearance must be filed separately from any other document (with the exception of an application for APO access).  Note, the letter of appearance must state how the party qualifies as an interested party (e.g., an exporter, producer, importer of the subject merchandise) and must include a point of contact, including address, telephone/fax number and email address.  If you have an E-Filer account for Enforcement and Compliance’s Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Centralized Electronic Service System (ACCESS), you may also enter your appearance by logging into ACCESS at https://access.trade.gov and clicking on “Manage Entry of Appearance” and then “Create New Entry of Appearance.”

All submissions to Commerce must be filed electronically using ACCESS.  An electronically-filed document must be received successfully in its entirety by the time, typically 5 p.m., and date when it is due.  Note that Commerce has temporarily modified certain of its requirements for serving documents containing business proprietary information until further notice.¹

For your convenience, Commerce has the following resources available online to assist you in complying with these electronic filing procedures:

ACCESS:  Help Link 

https://access.trade.gov/help.aspx

ACCESS:  External User Guide https://access.trade.gov/help/ACCESS_User_Guide.pdf

ACCESS:  Handbook on Electronic Filing Procedures

https://access.trade.gov/help/Handbook_on_Electronic_Filing_Procedures.pdf

Federal Register notice:  Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Proceedings:  Electronic Filing Procedures; Administrative Protective Order Procedures, 76 FR 39263 (July 6, 2011)

http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2011-07-06/pdf/2011-16352.pdf

Enforcement and Compliance:  Change of Electronic Filing System Name, 79 FR 69046 (November 20, 2014)

http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2014-11-20/pdf/2014-27530.pdf

Enforcement and Compliance:  General Filing Requirements https://enforcement.trade.gov/filing/index.html

Required Certifications

Please note that certification requirements are in effect for company / government officials as well as their representatives.  In all segments of antidumping duty or countervailing duty proceedings, parties submitting factual information must adhere to 19 CFR 351.303(g) regarding the requirement to certify submissions of factual information.

Understanding Critical Circumstances for Antidumping and Countervailing Duties

Critical circumstances is a provision in both the antidumping and countervailing

Duty (AD/CVD) laws that allows for the limited retroactive imposition of duties if certain conditions are met.  Importers should be aware that entries of subject merchandise made after the initiation of an AD/CVD investigation may retroactively be subject to AD/CVD.  

A finding of critical circumstances is an important tool for Commerce and the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) to offset possible import surges during the early period of an AD/CVD investigation.  The petitioner in an AD/CVD investigation may allege critical circumstances during an investigation up to 21 days before the date of Commerce’s final determination.  If Commerce makes a determination that critical circumstances exist, it has the statutory authority to order the retroactive suspension of liquidation and posting of a cash deposit for entries made before the issuance of a Preliminary and/or Final AD/CVD determination.  

Commerce’s authority to suspend entries retroactively for AD/CVD is limited to those entries made on or after the later of: (1) 90 days before the effective date the suspension of liquidation was first ordered, or (2) the date on which the determination to initiate the investigation is published in the Federal Register.  In either case, AD/CVD cash deposits are due on entries subject to critical circumstances determinations.

If, following a preliminary determination by Commerce that critical circumstances exist, both Commerce and the ITC reach a final affirmative determination of dumping or subsidization, but either agency makes a negative final determination of critical circumstances, Commerce will instruct U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to lift suspension from the entries made during the 90-day critical circumstances period and refund cash deposits made with respect to those entries.  Interest is not payable on refunds of cash deposits at this stage in the AD/CVD case. 

For Further Information Contact:           

AD/CVD Operations, Enforcement and Compliance, U.S. Department of Commerce, 1401 Constitution Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20230: 

Dakota Potts at (202) 482-0223 (Antidumping Duty Investigation from Brazil);

Ariela Garvett at (202) 482-3609 (Antidumping Duty Investigation from South Africa).

Determinations related to these proceedings, issued by Commerce and the ITC, will be published in the Federal Register.  Parties may also view Commerce’s public AD/CVD instructions to CBP in ACE and “ADD CVD Search” at https://aceservices.cbp.dhs.gov/adcvdweb.

[1] See Temporary Rule Modifying AD/CVD Service Requirements Due to COVID-19; Extension of Effective Period, 85 FR 41363 (July 10, 2020)