Taian Ziyang Food Co., Ltd. v. United States
2011 WL 3024720
Ct. Intl. Trade2011Background
- This is a consolidated action in the U.S. Court of International Trade challenging Commerce's Ninth Administrative Review of the antidumping duty order on fresh garlic from China.
- Taian Ziyang Food Co. v. United States previously sustained some rulings and remanded others; the current Second Remand Determination revalues several factors of production for the GDLSK Plaintiffs.
- Plaintiffs Harmoni, Jinan Yipin, Linshu Dading, and Sunny (the GDLSK Plaintiffs) challenge three remanded issues related to labor, and packaging costs, among others, while FHTK remains unchanged.
- Commerce revalued irrigation costs, garlic seed, leased land, and ocean freight in the Second Remand Determination, while continuing to value garlic seed for some respondents as previously done and leaving other inputs (seed, cartons, jars) to remand.
- The court sustains Commerce's Second Remand Determination on certain inputs (garlic seed, irrigation, leased land, ocean freight) and remands the cardio/containers-related valuations (cardboard cartons and plastic jars/lids) and labor for further action consistent with the opinion.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Valuation of garlic seed | Harmoni and Jinan Yipin contend the data set used for seed valuation is inappropriate. | Commerce used NHRDF data as best product-specific surrogate for seed. | Sustained: Second Remand Determination supported |
| Valuation of irrigation costs | Record shows Indian farmers do not pay for irrigation water; surrogates should avoid double-counting. | Commerce valued pumping energy (diesel/electricity) rather than water itself as surrogate. | Sustained: Second Remand Determination affirmed |
| Valuation of labor expenses | Dorbest requires labor values from economically comparable, significant producers; the regression method used was invalid. | Commerce defended its regression-based wage rate and its application. | Remanded: recalculate labor wages in accordance with Dorbest and allow comments |
| Valuation of leased land | Leased land was double-counted; evidence shows lease costs embedded in SG&A. | Second Remand Determination found no separate surrogate value for leased land required. | Sustained: no separate lease value used; remand compliant |
| Valuation of cardboard packing cartons | Indian import data are distorted by non-carton boxes and air freight; domestic quotes are more product-specific. | Import data favored as best available information; domestic quotes were unreliable. | Remanded: reopen record for carton data; Second Remand Determination insufficient |
Key Cases Cited
- Shakeproof Assembly Components v. United States, 268 F.3d 1376 (Fed.Cir. 2001) (surrogate valuation discretion and best-information standard)
- Ningbo Dafa Chem. Fiber Co., Ltd. v. United States, 580 F.3d 1247 (Fed.Cir. 2009) (best available information requirement)
- Dorbest Ltd. v. United States, 604 F.3d 1363 (Fed.Cir. 2010) (regulatory validity of labor data; Dorbest holding on § 351.408 regulation)
- Allied Pacific Food (Dalian) Co. v. United States, 460 F.Supp.2d 1365 (CIT 2006) (review of surrogate-value data selection and process)
- Jinan Yipin Corp. v. United States (III), 774 F.Supp.2d 1238 (CIT 2011) (contextual consideration of surrogate data sources in NME cases)