Petition Seeks New AD Duties on Preserved Mushrooms

A domestic producer filed petitions March 30 with the Commerce Department and the International Trade Commission requesting new antidumping duties on preserved mushrooms from France, the Netherlands, Poland and Spain. Commerce will now decide whether to begin AD duty investigations. Giorgio Foods requested the investigation.

Any AD duty orders issued in connection with these investigations would follow AD duty orders issued in 1998 on preserved mushrooms from Chile, China, India and Indonesia.

Proposed Scope

The petition proposes the following scope for the investigations:

The merchandise covered by this investigation is certain preserved mushrooms, whether imported whole, sliced, diced, or as stems and pieces. The preserved mushrooms covered under this investigation are the genus Agaricus. "Preserved mushrooms" refer to mushrooms that have been prepared or preserved by cleaning, blanching, and sometimes slicing or cutting. These mushrooms are then packed and heat sterilized in containers each holding a net drained weight of not more than 12 ounces (340.2 grams), including but not limited to cans or glass jars, in a suitable liquid medium, including but not limited to water, brine, butter or butter sauce. Preserved mushrooms may be imported whole, sliced, diced, or as stems and pieces.

The merchandise subject to these investigations is classifiable under subheadings 2003.10.0127, 2003.10.0131, and 2003.10.0137 of the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the U.S. ("HTSUS"). The subject merchandise may also be classified under HTSUS subheadings 2003.10.0143, 2003.10.0147 and 2003.10.0153. Although the HTSUS subheadings are provided for convenience and customs purposes, the written description of the merchandise under investigation 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 an antidumping duty investigation. Comments are due by April 13.