## Facts

- Aromont USA, Inc. imported concentrated culinary flavoring products from France used primarily in professional kitchens.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection classified the merchandise under HTSUS subheading 2104.10.00 (“soups and broths and preparations therefor”), resulting in a higher duty rate.
- Aromont protested, asserting classification under HTSUS subheading 2106.90.99 (“food preparations not elsewhere specified or included”), a lower-duty residual provision.
- The concentrates were marketed and used as flavor enhancers in sauces, glazes, and other dishes, with soup listed as only one potential use.
- When diluted, the products did not readily yield a clear, typical soup or broth; the resulting liquid was described as cloudy and unlike commercial soup/broth products.
- The products were relatively expensive compared to ordinary soup bases and were distributed primarily through professional or institutional channels.
- Customs denied the protest; Aromont sued in the U.S. Court of International Trade (CIT), which granted summary judgment for Aromont and classified the goods under 2106.90.99.

## Issues

1. Whether the merchandise falls within HTSUS heading 2104 as “soups and broths and preparations therefor” based on its principal use in the U.S. market.
2. If not classifiable under heading 2104, whether it is properly classified under HTSUS subheading 2106.90.99 as a residual category for other food preparations.

## Decision

- The Federal Circuit affirmed the CIT’s summary judgment for Aromont.
- The court held the products were not classifiable under HTSUS heading 2104 because their principal use was not as soups or broths or their preparations.
- The court held classification under HTSUS subheading 2106.90.99 was proper as “food preparations not elsewhere specified or included.”
- The court reviewed classification de novo while accepting supported factual findings underlying the principal-use determination and found no genuine dispute of material fact.

## Legal Principles

- HTSUS classification is governed by the terms of the headings and relevant section and chapter notes, applied through the General Rules of Interpretation.
- A principal-use provision is applied based on the principal use of the class or kind of goods in the U.S. market at or immediately before the time of importation.
- Principal use is determined through a multi-factor inquiry that may include physical characteristics, purchaser expectations, channels of trade, economic practicality of the asserted use, and actual usage in the marketplace.
- A product’s capability of being used for a purpose described by a heading does not control if that purpose is not the product’s principal use; if a principal-use heading does not apply, a residual “basket” provision may govern.

## Conclusion

The Federal Circuit held that concentrated culinary flavor bases chiefly used by professional chefs as general flavoring ingredients are not “soups and broths and preparations therefor” under HTSUS heading 2104; because the record showed their principal use was flavor enhancement across dishes rather than soup/broth preparation, they were properly classified under HTSUS subheading 2106.90.99.


Aromont USA, Inc. v. United States, 671 F.3d 1310 (Fed. Cir. 2012)