Seafood Seller Says Commerce Erred in Denying It Wholesaler Status in AD Review

The Commerce Department erred in finding that seafood seller Luscious Seafood didn't qualify as a "bona fide wholesaler of domestic like product" during the 2021-22 review of the antidumping duty order on frozen fish fillets from Vietnam, Luscious said in a May 1 complaint at the Court of International Trade (Luscious Seafood v. U.S., CIT # 24-00069).

Luscious said Commerce's decision "ignored or misinterpreted substantial evidence on the record regarding Luscious' business practices, history, the nature of its sales, and its operating process." The agency's reliance on the company's "limited history, sources of funding, and affiliated transactions as grounds for denying" the company wholesaler status are not backed by substantial evidence, the complaint said.

The company said Commerce has never previously created a "limited history," "sources of funding" or "affiliated transaction" standard. As a result, the decision is "flawed significantly," the brief said.