Hello Vlad,
Thank you for your clarification. I think I can be of some help to
you.
To begin, the U.S. Customs Department has issued summaries of official
guidelines on importation of goods to assist importers in identifying
and interpreting the various laws applying to their particular area of
interest. These summaries are called “Informed Compliance
Publications,” and are available for download from the U.S. Customs
website.
Reading this publication is probably the best place to start, and you
can find the most current one pertaining to mushrooms here:
http://www.customs.gov/ImageCache/cgov/content/laws/informed_5fcompliance_5fregs/icp007r2_2epdf/v1/icp007r2.pdf
(The main U.S. Customs website is here: http://www.customs.gov .)
Note that this publication does not distinguish between cultivated or
wild mushrooms, nor does there appear to be any such distinction in
any of the other references to mushroom imporation. Rather, mushrooms
are CLASSIFIED according to their state at the time of importation,
i.e. fresh, preserved, dried, etc. and importers are required to
adhere to the Harmonized Tarriff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS)
for classification. The portion applicable to mushrooms is excerpted
within the above publication. The entire text of the HSUS can be
found here: http://www.fas.usda.gov/itp/us-tariff-sch.html
In addition to proper classification, “all imported articles must be
MARKED in a conspicuous place as legibly, indelibly and permanently as
the nature of the articles (or container) in such manner as to
indicate to an ultimate consumer in the United States, the English
name of the country of origin of the article.” (U.S. Customs Informed
Compliance Publication – Mushrooms, 10/96 rev. 03/01) This marking
regulation makes it clear that the country of origin must be clearly
marked so that the “ultimate consumer,” i.e. the retail customer, is
made aware of the origin of the product. This would also include
goods sold to a wholesaler who is then, in turn, responsible for
ensuring the marking remains legible to the retail customer.
A detailed DESCRIPTION of the product must be included on all
invoices, including such information as state (fresh, frozen, dried,
etc.), genus, species, form (whole, buttons, sliced, etc.), type of
packing, country of origin, etc.
And there is a mushroom import assessment FEE that will need to be
paid.
These are only the major topics covered within the publication. You
will need to familiarize yourself with it, with the HTSUS, and with
the portion of the Code of Federal Regulations applying to import law
and specifically mushrooms. In addition, as indicated in your
question, you’re already aware that dealing with any foodstuffs also
comes under applicable portions of other laws and government agencies,
particularly the USDA and the FDA. To access the entire (searchable)
CFR, check out this link: http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/ . The
most applicable portions for your needs are
Title 7 (7CFR) Agriculture:
http://www.access.gpo.gov/cgi-bin/cfrassemble.cgi?title=200207
Title 19 (19CFR) Customs Duties:
http://www.access.gpo.gov/cgi-bin/cfrassemble.cgi?title=200219
Title 21 Food and Drugs
http://www.access.gpo.gov/cgi-bin/cfrassemble.cgi?title=200221
-Labeling requirements in 21CFR 101
Also, the The FDA has published a Food Labeling Guide@ to answers
questions on the NL&A requirements, copies may be obtained from:
The Division of Programs and Enforcement Policy (HFS-155)
Office of Food Labeling, Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition
Food and Drug Administration
200 C Street, S.W.
Washington, D.C. 20204
Telephone: (202) 205-5229
In addition, the website for The Federal Register, which is the
official daily publication for current news and updates is here:
http://www.access.gpo.gov/su_docs/aces/aces140.html#frbrowse It will,
of course, be essential for you to keep up with all current
changes/additions to the laws governing your particular area of
interest. For all documents online, you can use the “Edit,” “Find”
feature of your browser to search the text of these voluminous laws
for portions applicable to mushrooms in particular, as well as to
labeling and packing in general.
Here are links to the other government agencies involved in regulating
foods, including imported foods, in the US:
United States Department of Agriculture (USDA)
Main site:
http://www.usda.gov
USDA Foreign Agricultural Service:
http://www.fas.usda.gov
FAS Import Programs and information:
http://www.fas.usda.gov/import.html
**** Food and Agricultural Import Regulations and Standards Report
(FAIRS) of the United States of America:
http://www.fas.usda.gov/itp/ofsts/us.html **** This report contains
much detailed information. Be sure to read it thoroughly.
United States Food and Drug Administration (USFDA)
Main site:
http://www.fda.gov
FDA website search results for “wild mushrooms:”
http://63.75.126.224/google/fda_search.pl?q=wild+mushrooms&searchselector=&restrict=cfsan&client=fdagov&site=fdagov&sa=Search
And finally, here are some general links to sites about the mushroom
industry in general, with some additional links to further information
you may find useful:
The Mushroom Council
Establishment of:
http://frwebgate4.access.gpo.gov/cgi-bin/waisgate.cgi?WAISdocID=60305732393+4+0+0&WAISaction=retrieve
Website:
http://www.mushroomcouncil.com/
Handling of wild mushrooms, with further links:
http://www.cfsan.fda.gov/~dms/qa-ind4q.html
Obviously, there are many laws and regulations, to be sure, and
requirements, and publications, and information and documents online
and off governing the importing of mushrooms. Still, once you’ve
identified the specific procedure for your particular activity,
hopefully you should be able to proceed smoothly. I wish you the best
of luck in your importing business.
I hope this information is satisfactory. If you need clarification on
any of the information presented here, or if there were particular
links you expectec but did not receive, please do ask before rating
and closing the question, so that I might have the opportunity to be
sure you’re satisfied with your answer.
Best regards and good luck with your business,
--Byrd
Search terms used:
“importing into the United States” wild mushrooms
U.S. Customs "informed compliance publications" online mushrooms
USDA
U.S. Department of Commerce
U.S. Code of Federal Regulations
“Harmonized Tariff Schedule” |
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