[Federal Register Volume 67, Number 134 (Friday, July 12, 2002)]
[Notices]
[Pages 46172-46173]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 02-17592]



[[Page 46172]]

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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

International Trade Administration

[A-533-813]


Certain Preserved Mushrooms From India: Final Results of 
Antidumping Duty Administrative Review

AGENCY: Import Administration, International Trade Administration, 
Department of Commerce.

ACTION: Notice of final results of antidumping duty administrative 
review.

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SUMMARY: On March 7, 2002, the Department of Commerce published the 
preliminary results of the second administrative review of the 
antidumping duty order on certain preserved mushrooms from India (67 FR 
10371). The review covers four manufacturers/exporters. The period of 
review is February 1, 2000, through January 31, 2001.
    Based on our analysis of the comments received, we have made 
changes in the margin calculations. Therefore, the final results differ 
from the preliminary results. The final weighted-average dumping 
margins for the reviewed firms are listed below in the section entitled 
``Final Results of Review.''

EFFECTIVE DATE: July 12, 2002.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: David J. Goldberger, Katherine 
Johnson, or Margarita Panayi, Office 2, AD/CVD Enforcement Group I, 
Import Administration-Room B099, International Trade Administration, 
U.S. Department of Commerce, 14th Street and Constitution Avenue, NW., 
Washington, DC 20230; telephone: (202) 482-4136, (202) 482-4929, or 
(202) 482-0049, respectively.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

The Applicable Statute

    Unless otherwise indicated, all citations to the Tariff Act of 
1930, as amended (the Act), are references to the provisions effective 
January 1, 1995, the effective date of the amendments made to the Act 
by the Uruguay Round Agreements Act (``URAA''). In addition, unless 
otherwise indicated, all citations to the Department of Commerce's (the 
``Department's'') regulations are to 19 CFR Part 351 (2000).

Background

    The review covers four manufacturers/exporters: Agro Dutch Foods 
Ltd. (``Agro Dutch'') \1\, Himalya International Ltd. (``Himalya''), 
Saptarishi Agro Industries, Inc. (``Saptarishi''), and Weikfield Agro 
Products Ltd. (``Weikfield''). The period of review is February 1, 
2000, through January 31, 2001.
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    \1\ Effective January 8, 2001, Agro Dutch changed its name from 
``Agro Dutch Foods Limited''Agro Dutch Industries Limited.''
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    On March 7, 2002, the Department of Commerce published the 
preliminary results of the second administrative review of the 
antidumping duty order on certain preserved mushrooms from India (67 FR 
10371). We invited parties to comment on the preliminary results of 
review. On March 20 and 26, 2002, we received requests for a public 
hearing from respondent Agro Dutch and the petitioners \2\, 
respectively. We received case briefs from the petitioners and Agro 
Dutch on May 10, 2002. We received rebuttal briefs from the 
petitioners, Agro Dutch and Weikfield on May 17, 2002. We held a public 
hearing at the Department on May 22, 2002. We have conducted this 
administrative review in accordance with section 751 of the Act.
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    \2\ The petitioners are the Coalition for Fair Preserved 
Mushroom Trade which includes the American Mushroom Institute and 
the following domestic companies: L.K. Bowman, Inc.; Modern 
Mushrooms Farms, Inc.; Monterey Mushrooms, Inc.; Mount Laurel 
Canning Corp.; Mushrooms Canning Company; Southwood Farms; Sunny 
Dell Foods, Inc.; and United Canning Corp.
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Scope of the Order

    The products covered by the order are certain preserved mushrooms, 
whether imported whole, sliced, diced, or as stems and pieces. The 
preserved mushrooms covered under the order are the species Agaricus 
bisporus and Agaricus bitorquis. ``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 
heated in containers 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. Included within the scope of the 
order are ``brined'' mushrooms, which are presalted and packed in a 
heavy salt solution to provisionally preserve them for further 
processing.
    Excluded from the scope of the order are the following: (1) All 
other species of mushroom, including straw mushrooms; (2) all fresh and 
chilled mushrooms, including ``refrigerated'' or ``quick blanched 
mushrooms'; (3) dried mushrooms; (4) frozen mushrooms; and (5) 
``marinated,'' ``acidified'' or ``pickled'' mushrooms, which are 
prepared or preserved by means of vinegar or acetic acid, but may 
contain oil or other additives.
    The merchandise subject to the order is classifiable under 
subheadings 2003.10.0027, 2003.10.0031, 2003.10.0037, 2003.10.0043, 
2003.10.0047, 2003.10.0053, and 0711.90.4000 of the Harmonized Tariff 
Schedule of the United States (``HTSUS'').\3\ Although the HTSUS 
subheadings are provided for convenience and customs purposes, our 
written description of the scope of the order is dispositive.
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    \3\ As of January 1, 2002, the HTSUS numbers are as follows: 
2003.10.0127, 2003.10.0131, 2003.10.0137, 2003.10.0143, 
2003.10.0147, 2003.10.0153, and 0711.51.0000.
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Allegation of Duty Reimbursement

    In its January 30, 2002, comments, the petitioners allege that 
because Agro Dutch and Weikfield are the importers of record for the 
preserved mushrooms they produce and export to the United States, and, 
therefore, pay all applicable antidumping cash deposits and duties on 
this merchandise, they are paying duties on behalf of their respective 
importers within the meaning of the Department's reimbursement 
regulation. See 19 CFR 351.402(f). In numerous cases, the Department 
has held that reimbursement within the meaning of the regulation does 
not occur when the importer and exporter are the same legal entity. 
Because Agro Dutch and Weikfield function both as the exporter and U.S. 
importer of the preserved mushrooms they produce, there is no basis for 
reducing U.S. price under the Department's reimbursement regulation. 
See, e.g., Certain Welded Carbon Steel Pipes and Tubes from Thailand: 
Final Results of Antidumping Duty Administrative Review, 66 FR 53388 
(October 22, 2001), and accompanying Issues and Decision Memorandum at 
Comment 1. No parties have commented on this issue in the context of 
this review since the allegation was made on January 30, 2002.

Analysis of Comments Received

    All issues raised in the case and rebuttal briefs by parties to 
this antidumping duty administrative review are addressed in the 
``Issues and Decision Memorandum'' (``Decision Memo'') from Richard W. 
Moreland, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Import Administration, to 
Faryar Shirzad, Assistant Secretary for Import Administration, dated 
July 5, 2002, which is hereby adopted by this notice. A list of the 
issues which parties have

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raised and to which we have responded, all of which are in the Decision 
Memo, is attached to this notice as an Appendix. Parties can find a 
complete discussion of all issues raised in this review and the 
corresponding recommendations in this public memorandum which is on 
file in the Central Records Unit, room B-099 of the main Department 
building. In addition, a complete version of the Decision Memo can be 
accessed directly on the Web at http://ia.ita.doc.gov/. The paper copy 
and electronic version of the Decision Memo are identical in content.

Changes From the Preliminary Results

    Based on our analysis of comments received, we have made certain 
changes to the margin calculations, including:
     The application of adverse facts available to certain Agro 
Dutch sales;
     The revision of Agro Dutch's imputed credit expense 
calculation to include commissions Agro Dutch deducted from the gross 
price in the calculation;
     The change in the payment date used for calculating 
imputed credit expenses on unpaid sales made by Agro Dutch and 
Weikfield from the preliminary results date to the final results date; 
and
     The revision of the assessment rate calculation for Agro 
Dutch's and Weikfield's export price sales from a percentage to a per-
unit basis.
    For a discussion of these changes, see the ``Margin Calculations'' 
section of the Decision Memo.

Final Results of Review

    We determine that the following weighted-average margin percentages 
exist:

------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                Margin
                   Manufacturer/exporter                      (percent)
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Agro Dutch Foods Ltd/Agro Dutch Industries Ltd.............        27.80
Himalya International Ltd..................................         0.68
Saptarishi Agro Industries, Ltd............................        66.24
Weikfield Agro Products Ltd................................         0.00
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    The Department shall determine, and the Customs Service shall 
assess, antidumping duties on all appropriate entries. In accordance 
with 19 CFR 351.212(b), we have calculated importer-specific assessment 
rates. We will direct the Customs Service to assess the resulting rates 
against the entered units or customs values of the subject merchandise 
on each importer's entries under the relevant order during the review 
period. In accordance with 19 CFR 351.106(c)(2), we will instruct the 
Customs Service to liquidate without regard to antidumping duties all 
entries of subject merchandise for which the importer-specific 
assessment rate is zero or de minimis (i.e., less than 0.50 percent).

Cash Deposit Requirements

    The following deposit requirements will be effective upon 
publication of this notice of final results of the administrative 
review for all shipments of certain preserved mushrooms from India 
entered, or withdrawn from warehouse, for consumption on or after the 
date of publication, as provided by section 751(a)(1) of the Act: (1) 
The cash deposit rates for Agro Dutch, Himalya, Saptarishi, and 
Weikfield will be the rates shown above; (2) for previously reviewed or 
investigated companies not listed above, the cash deposit rate will 
continue to be the company-specific rate published for the most recent 
period; (3) if the exporter is not a firm covered in this review, a 
prior review, or the original less-than-fair-value (LTFV) 
investigation, but the manufacturer is, the cash deposit rate will be 
the rate established for the most recent period for the manufacturer of 
the merchandise; and (4) the cash deposit rate for all other 
manufacturers or exporters will continue to be 11.30 percent. This rate 
is the ``All Others'' rate from the LTFV investigation.
    These deposit requirements shall remain in effect until publication 
of the final results of the next administrative review.
    This notice also serves as a final reminder to importers of their 
responsibility under 19 CFR 351.402(f) to file a certificate regarding 
the reimbursement of antidumping duties prior to liquidation of the 
relevant entries during this review period. Failure to comply with this 
requirement could result in the Secretary's presumption that 
reimbursement of antidumping duties occurred and the subsequent 
assessment of doubled antidumping duties.
    This notice serves as the only reminder to parties subject to 
administrative protective order (APO) of their responsibility 
concerning the disposition of proprietary information disclosed under 
APO in accordance with 19 CFR 351.305(a)(3). Timely written 
notification of return/destruction of APO materials or conversion to 
judicial protective order is hereby requested. Failure to comply with 
the regulations and the terms of an APO is a sanctionable violation. We 
are issuing and publishing this determination and notice in accordance 
with sections section 751(a)(1) and 777(i) of the Act.

    Dated: July 5, 2002.
Joseph A. Spetrini,
Acting Assistant Secretary for Import Administration.

Appendix--List of Issues

General Comment

Comment 1: Profit Rate for Constructed Value

Company-Specific Comments

Agro Dutch

Comment 2: Application of Facts Available for Certain U.S. Sales
Comment 3: Treatment of Rejected U.S. Sales
Comment 4: Classification of ``Expenses Written Off''
Comment 5: Classification of Exchange Rate Losses for Notes Payable
Comment 6: Agro Dutch Name Change

Weikfield

Comment 7: Inclusion of Parent Company G&A Expenses in Weikfield's 
G&A Rate

Saptarishi

Comment 8: Selection of Facts Available Rate

[FR Doc. 02-17592 Filed 7-11-02; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DS-P