Dried Nori Destined for Roasting in US 'Edible Seaweed,' Not 'Prepared Food,' Importer Says
An importer of dried seaweed brought a complaint Dec. 4 to the Court of International Trade challenging the reclassification of its seaweed “for the first time in 37 years” (Takaokaya USA v. United States, CIT # 24-00213).
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Importer Takaokaya USA said it receives dried raw nori seaweed from its Japanese parent company, then roasts, cuts and packages it in the United States. Prior to processing by Takaokaya, the seaweed isn’t edible, the importer said.
For decades, the seaweed has been imported under duty-free Harmonized Tariff Schedule heading 1212 for “seaweeds and other algae … frozen or dried … used primarily for human consumption,” it said.
But CBP reclassified the product under heading 2008 for “fruits, nuts and other edible parts of plants, otherwise prepared or preserved … not elsewhere specified,” carrying a 6% duty. The agency said in its denial of Takaokaya’s protest that the drying of the seaweed, which takes place in Japan, is further processing.
Takaokaya pushed back against the analysis, saying that heading 1212 expressly covered “dried” seaweed. If the seaweed had been roasted, it wouldn’t have been covered under 1212, it said; but significant prior precedent indicates that seaweed that has just been dried is considered “edible seaweed,” not “prepared food.”
CBP itself has made several past findings that seaweed that is solely dried falls under heading 1212, it said.
“It is important to emphasize that it is actually impossible to roast seaweed in the cabinet-style air-dryer employed by the Japanese Parent in this case,” it said.