HQ 952248: Wall hangings; wood crate; textile materials; glass bottles; bread dough figurines; molding; GRIs 3(b) and 3(c); headings 1901, 1905, 4415 and 6307; Explanatory Note VIII to GRI 3(b); Explanatory Note 96.02

Native CBP ruling rendition. Applicability is fact-specific; modification/revocation relationships and original publisher date are retained. Publisher sentinel year0001 means unknown date, not a historical legal adoption.

                            HQ 952248

                        December 11, 1992

CLA-2 CO:R:C:M  952248  NLP

CATEGORY: Classification

TARIFF NO.: 7010.90.20; 9602.00.50

Mr. N.C. Both
432 4th Street
Petrolia, Ontario, Canada
NON 1PO

RE:  Wall hangings; wood crate; textile materials; glass bottles;
     bread dough figurines; molding; GRIs 3(b) and 3(c); headings
     1901, 1905, 4415 and 6307; Explanatory Note VIII to GRI
     3(b); Explanatory Note 96.02 

Dear Mr. Both:

     This is in response to your letter dated July 15, 1992, in
which you requested the tariff classifications for wall hangings
described as a bathroom crate, a stick bird house and bread dough
figurines under the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United
States (HTSUS).  

FACTS:

     Samples of two of the products were submitted for our
review.  The first sample is a wall hanging described as a
bathroom crate.  In our ruling we will refer to this item as a
bathroom crate.  It is composed of a wooden crate approximately
10-1/4 inches in length, 4-3/4 inches in width and 2-3/4 inches
in depth.  The crate is decorated with lace and ribbon and has
two shelves.  On the lower shelf is a terry cloth rag folded to
give the impression of being 3 face cloths stacked on top of each
other with a small bar of wrapped soap at the top.  On the top
shelf are several items, including a small textile fan, soap and
plastic beads.  The shelf also has a glass bottle which is
approximately 3-1/2 inches in height with a metal cap.  The
bottle is filled with a pink viscous liquid.

     The bread dough figurines are hand molded into figures of
people, painted, baked and then coated with plastic.  Two of the
figurines have hooks in the back of them for hanging purposes and
the other two are figures attached to wood backings, which in
turn will hang from the wall via a ribbon or cord.  

     No sample or descriptive information was provided for the
stick bird house.

ISSUE:

     What is the tariff classification of the bathroom crate
under the HTSUS?

     What is the tariff classification of the bread dough
figurines under the HTSUS?

     What is the tariff classification of the stick bird house
under the HTSUS?

LAW AND ANALYSIS:

     The classification of goods under the HTSUS is governed by
the General Rules of Interpretation (GRI's), taken in order.  GRI
1 provides that classification shall be determined according to
the terms of the headings and any relative section or chapter
notes.  In the event that the goods cannot be classified solely
on the basis of GRI 1, and if the headings and legal notes do not
otherwise require, the remaining GRI's may be applied, taken in
order.  

HTSUS classification of the bathroom crate

     The main components of the bathroom crate are the wood
crate, the textile cloth and the glass bottle.  Therefore, there
are three possible headings for classification of the bathroom
crate and they are the following:

          Heading 4415        Packing cases, boxes, crates, drums
                              and similar packings, of wood;
                              etc...

          Heading 6307        Other made up articles, including
                              dress patterns.

          Heading 7010        Carboys, bottles, flasks, jars,
                              pots, vials, ampoules and other
                              containers, of glass, of a kind
                              used for the conveyance or packing
                              of goods; preserving jars of glass;
                              stoppers, lids and other closures,
                              of glass.      

     None of the above headings specifically describe the
bathroom crate and it, therefore, cannot be classified based on
GRI 1.  As the subject bathroom crate is composed of several
different components it is a composite good.  GRI 2 addresses
classification of composite goods and states, in pertinent part,
the following:


          (b)  ... Any reference to goods of a given             
               material or substance shall be taken to           
               include a reference to goods consisting wholly    
               or partly of such material or substance.  The
               classification of goods consisting of more than
               one material or substance shall be according      
               to the principles of rule 3. 

     GRI 3 governs the classification of goods which are prima
facie classifiable within two or more headings and provides the
following:

          When, by application of rule 2(b) or for any other     
     reason, goods are, prima facie, classifiable under two or   
     more headings, classification shall be effected as follows: 

          (b)  Mixtures, composite goods consisting of different
               materials or made up of different components, and
               goods put up in sets for retail sale, which       
               cannot be classified by reference to 3(a), shall  
               be classified as if they consisted of the         
               material or component which gives them their      
               essential character, insofar as this criterion is
               applicable.

     Explanatory Note (EN) VIII to GRI 3(b) of the Harmonized
Commodity Description and Coding System, page 4, states that: 

          (VIII)  The factor which determines essential          
                  character will vary as between different kinds
                  of goods.  It may, for example, be determined  
                  by the nature of the material or component, its
                  bulk, quantity, weight or value, or by the     
                  role of a constituent material in relation to  
                  the use of the goods.

The essential character of the wall hanging is not readily
apparent.  Each of the listed articles plays a role in the wall
hanging.  For example, the wood crate provides the structure of
the item.  The textile and glass articles provide the decorative
aspects to the wall hanging.  No single item imparts a unique
character to the wall hanging and, moreover, none of the factors
given above prove determinative in any respect.

     When the component which gives the products at issue their
essential character cannot be determined, classification is
ascertained by utilizing GRI 3(c).  GRI 3(c) provides the
following:




          (c)  When goods cannot be classified by reference to   
               3(a) or 3(b), they shall be classified under the
               heading which occurs last in numerical order among
               those which equally merit consideration.  

     Among the headings which equally merit consideration,
heading 7010, HTSUS, is the last in numerical order.  Therefore,
the bathroom crate is classified in heading 7010, HTSUS. 
Specifically, the crate is classified in subheading 7010.90.20,
HTSUS, which provides for "[c]arboys, bottles, flasks, jars,
pots, vials, ampoules and other containers, of glass, of a kind
used for the conveyance or packing goods;...[o]ther...;
containers (with or without their closures) of a kind used for
the conveyance or packing of perfume or other toilet
preparations;..., [p]roduced by automatic machine.

HTSUS classification of the bread dough figurines

     The bread dough figurines are neither bread nor dough for
tariff classification purposes.  Heading 1905, HTSUS, provides
for, inter alia, "[b]read, pastry, cakes..."  This heading covers
edible human food articles baked, in most cases, from a cereal
based dough.  The figurines at issue, while made from cereal
based dough, are not edible and have no commercial identity as
bread.  Therefore, they are not classified as bread in this
heading.  Subheading 1901.20, HTSUS, provides for "...[m]ixes and
doughs for the preparation of bakers' wares of heading 1905." 
Dough provided for in this subheading must be a dough used to
make a product falling in heading 1905, HTSUS.  The articles here
are finished products and will not be so used,  Moreover,
classification in subheading 1901.20, HTSUS, would require the
product to be human food or a human food ingredient, which the
figurines are not.  

     Heading 9602, HTSUS, provides for "[w]orked vegetable or
mineral carving material and articles of these materials; molded
or carved articles of wax, of stearin, of natural gums or natural
resins, of modeling pastes, and other molded or carved articles,
not elsewhere specified or included..."

     The ENs to heading 9602 provide the following on page 1599:

          For the purposes of these materials, the expression
     "moulded articles" means articles which have been moulded to
     a shape appropriate to their intended use.  On the other 
     hand, materials moulded in the shape of blocks, cubes,      
     plates, bars, sticks, etc., whether or not impressed during
     moulding, are not included.





          Subject to the exclusions mentioned below, this group
          includes:

          *         *         *         *         *
     
     (7)  Moulded or carved articles made with a basis of flour
          or starch, agglomerated with gum and lacquered
          (imitation flowers or fruit, moulded in one piece,
          statuettes, etc).

     The subject figurines are molded articles with a basis of
flour and are coated with plastic after they have been baked.  It
is our position that, as the figurines are not specified or
included in another heading in the tariff and they are described
by the ENs in heading 9602, they are classified in this heading. 
Specifically, they are classified in subheading 9602.00.50,
HTSUS, which provides for "... [m]olded or carved articles of
wax, of stearin, of natural gums or natural resins, or modeling
pastes, and other molded or carved articles, not elsewhere
specified or included;...[o]ther."

     We are unable to provide you with a HTS classification on
the stick bird house as we do not have a sample and the
description provided is so vague.  However, if you require a
binding classification ruling for this product you may submit
another request accompanied by a sample and a detailed
description of the item to the Area Director of Customs, New York
Seaport, 6 World Trade Center, NY, NY, 10048.

HOLDING:

     The bathroom crate is classified in subheading 7010.90.20,
HTSUS.  The duty rate is 3.7% ad valorem.  Articles classified in
this subheading are entitled to a 2.2% ad valorem rate of duty
under the United States-Canada Free Trade Agreement (FTA), upon
compliance with all applicable regulations.

     The bread dough figurines are classified in subheading
9602.00.50, HTSUS.  The rate of duty is 3.7% ad valorem.  
Articles classified in this subheading are entitled to a 2.2% ad
valorem rate of duty under the FTA, upon compliance with all
applicable regulations.

     
                                   Sincerely,



                                   John Durant, Director
                                   Commercial Rulings Division