19-2-4042 US importers' questionnaire

OMB No. 3117-0016/USITC No. 19-2-4042; Expiration Date: 6/30/2020
(No response is required if currently valid OMB control number is not displayed)

U.S. IMPORTERS’ QUESTIONNAIRE
DRIED TART CHERRIES FROM TURKEY
This questionnaire must be received by the Commission by May 7, 2019
See last page for filing instructions.
The information called for in this questionnaire is for use by the United States International Trade Commission in
connection with its countervailing duty and antidumping investigations concerning dried tart cherries from Turkey (Inv.
Nos. 701-TA-622 and 731-TA-1448 (Preliminary)). The information requested in the questionnaire is requested under the
authority of the Tariff Act of 1930, title VII. This report is mandatory and failure to reply as directed can result in a
subpoena or other order to compel the submission of records or information in your firm’s possession (19 U.S.C. §
1333(a)).

Name of firm
Address
City

State

Zip Code

Website
Has your firm imported dried tart cherries (as defined on next page) from any country at any time since January
1, 2016?

NO

(Sign the certification below and promptly return only this page of the questionnaire to the Commission)

YES

(Complete all parts of the questionnaire, and return the entire questionnaire to the Commission)

Return questionnaire via the U.S. International Trade Commission Drop Box by clicking on the
following link: https://dropbox.usitc.gov/oinv/. (PIN: TART)
CERTIFICATION
I certify that the information herein supplied in response to this questionnaire is complete and correct to the best of my
knowledge and belief and understand that the information submitted is subject to audit and verification by the Commission. By
means of this certification I also grant consent for the Commission, and its employees and contract personnel, to use the
information provided in this questionnaire and throughout this proceeding in any other import-injury proceedings conducted by
the Commission on the same or similar merchandise.
I, the undersigned, acknowledge that information submitted in response to this request for information and throughout this
proceeding or other proceedings may be disclosed to and used: (i) by the Commission, its employees and Offices, and contract
personnel (a) for developing or maintaining the records of this or a related proceeding, or (b) in internal investigations, audits,
reviews, and evaluations relating to the programs, personnel, and operations of the Commission including under 5 U.S.C.
Appendix 3; or (ii) by U.S. government employees and contract personnel, solely for cybersecurity purposes. I understand that all
contract personnel will sign appropriate nondisclosure agreements.
Name of Authorized Official

Signature

Title of Authorized Official

Phone

Date

Email address

Business Proprietary
U.S. Importers’ Questionnaire – Dried Tart Cherries (Preliminary)

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PART I.—GENERAL INFORMATION
Background.--This proceeding was instituted in response to a petition filed on April 23, 2019, by the
Dried Tart Cherry Trade Committee. Countervailing and/or antidumping duties may be assessed on the
subject imports as a result of these proceedings if the Commission makes an affirmative determination
of injury, threat, or material retardation, and if the U.S. Department of Commerce (“Commerce”) makes
an affirmative determination of subsidization and/or dumping. Questionnaires and other information
pertinent to this proceeding are available at
https://www.usitc.gov/investigations/701731/2019/dried_tart_cherries_turkey/preliminary.htm.
Dried tart cherries covered by these investigations may also be referred to as dried sour cherries or
dried red tart cherries. Dried tart cherries may be processed from any variety of tart cherries. Tart
cherries are generally classified as Prunus cerasus. Types of tart cherries include, but are not limited to,
Amarelle, Kutahya, Lutowka, Montmorency, Morello, and Oblacinska. Dried tart cherries are covered by
the scope of these investigations regardless of the horticulture method through which the cherries were
produced (e.g., organic or not).
Dried tart cherries are covered by the scope of these investigations whether or not they contain any
added sugar or other sweetening matter, whether or not they are coated in oil or rice flour, whether
infused or not infused, and regardless of the infusion ingredients, including sugar, sucrose, fruit juice,
and any other infusion ingredients. The subject merchandise covers all shapes, sizes, and colors of dried
tart cherries, whether pitted or unpitted, and whether whole, chopped, minced, crumbled, in granules,
broken, or otherwise reduced in size. The scope covers dried tart cherries in all types of packaging,
regardless of the size or packaging material.
Included in the scope of these investigations are dried tart cherries that otherwise meet the definition
above that are packaged with non-subject products, including, but not limited to, mixtures of dried fruits
and mixtures of dried fruits and nuts. Only the dried tart cherry components of such products are
covered by these investigations; the scope does not include the non-subject components of such
products.
Included in the scope of these investigations are all dried tart cherries produced in Turkey, including
dried tart cherries that have been further processed in a third country, including but not limited to
processing by sweetening, coating, chopping, mincing, crumbling, packaging with non-subject products,
or other packaging, or any other processing that would not otherwise remove the merchandise from the
scope of the investigations if performed in Turkey.
The scope of these investigations does not cover finished bakery and confectionery items (cakes,
cookies, candy, etc.) that incorporate dried tart cherries as an ingredient.
The subject merchandise is currently classifiable under 0813.40.3000 of the Harmonized Tariff Schedule
of the United States (HTSUS). The subject merchandise may also enter under subheadings 0813.40.9000,
0813.50.0020, 0813.50.0060, 2006.00.2000, and 2008.60.0060. The HTSUS subheadings set forth above
are provided for convenience and U.S. Customs purposes only. The written description of the scope is
dispositive.
Importer.--Any person or firm engaged, either directly or through a parent company or subsidiary, in
importing dried tart cherries (as defined above) into the United States from a foreign manufacturer or
through its selling agent.

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Reporting of information.--If information is not readily available from your records, provide carefully
prepared estimates. If your firm is completing more than one questionnaire (i.e., a producer, importer,
and/or purchaser questionnaire), you need not respond to duplicated questions.
Confidentiality.--The commercial and financial data furnished in response to this questionnaire that
reveal the individual operations of your firm will be treated as confidential by the Commission to the
extent that such data are not otherwise available to the public and will not be disclosed except as may
be required by law (see 19 U.S.C. § 1677f). Such confidential information will not be published in a
manner that will reveal the individual operations of your firm; however, general characterizations of
numerical business proprietary information (such as discussion of trends) will be treated as confidential
business information only at the request of the submitter for good cause shown.
Verification.-- The information submitted in this questionnaire is subject to audit and verification by the
Commission. To facilitate possible verification of data, please keep all files, worksheets, and supporting
documents used in the preparation of the questionnaire response. Please also retain a copy of the final
document that you submit.
Release of information.--The information provided by your firm in response to this questionnaire, as
well as any other business proprietary information submitted by your firm to the Commission in
connection with this proceeding, may become subject to, and released under, the administrative
protective order provisions of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. § 1677f) and section 207.7 of the
Commission’s Rules of Practice and Procedure (19 CFR § 207.7). This means that certain lawyers and
other authorized individuals may temporarily be given access to the information for use in connection
with this proceeding or other import-injury proceedings conducted by the Commission on the same or
similar merchandise; those individuals would be subject to severe penalties if the information were
divulged to unauthorized individuals.
Valid number error messages.--If you are completing this form in a country that uses periods (“.”) to
delineate multiples of 1000 (e.g., one million would appear as $1.000.000 rather than $1,000,000), you
may be unable to enter in numbers greater than 999 in numeric form fields. The solution to this data
entry issue is to temporarily change your operating system’s number formatting to be consistent with
the U.S. number formatting system while you complete this form. Detailed instructions on how to
resolve this issue is provided at the end of this questionnaire and is available upon request from Calvin
Chang (202-205-3062, [email protected]).
D-GRIDS tool.--The Commission has a tool that firms can use to move data from their own MS Excel
compilation files into self-contained data tables within this MS Word questionnaire, thereby reducing
the amount of cell-by-cell data entry that would be required to complete this form. This tool is a macroenabled MS Excel file available for download from the Commission's generic questionnaires webpage
(https://www.usitc.gov/trade_remedy/question.htm) called the "D-GRIDs tool." Use of this tool to help
your firm complete this questionnaire is optional. Firms opting to use the D-GRIDs tool to populate their
data into this questionnaire will need the D-GRIDs specification sheet PDF file specific to this proceeding
(available on the case page which is linked under the "Background" above) which includes the necessary
references relating to this questionnaire, as well as the macro-enable MS Excel D-GRIDs tool itself from
the generic questionnaires page. More detailed instructions on how to use the D-GRIDs tool are
available within the D-GRIDs tool itself.

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U.S. Importers’ Questionnaire – Dried Tart Cherries (Preliminary)
I-1.

Page 4

OMB statistics.--Please report below the actual number of hours required and the cost to your
firm of completing this questionnaire.
Hours

Dollars

The questions in this questionnaire have been reviewed with market participants to ensure that
issues of concern are adequately addressed and that data requests are sufficient, meaningful,
and as limited as possible. Public reporting burden for this questionnaire is estimated to average
40 hours per response, including the time for reviewing instructions, gathering data, and
completing and reviewing the questionnaire.
We welcome comments regarding the accuracy of this burden estimate, suggestions for
reducing the burden, and any suggestions for improving this questionnaire. Please attach such
comments to your response or send to the Office of Investigations, USITC, 500 E St. SW,
Washington, DC 20436.
I-2.

Establishments covered.--Provide the name and address of establishment(s) covered by this
questionnaire. If your firm is publicly traded, please specify the stock exchange and trading
symbol.
“Establishment”--Each facility of a firm involved in the importation of dried tart cherries,
including auxiliary facilities operated in conjunction with (whether or not physically separate
from) such facilities.

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U.S. Importers’ Questionnaire – Dried Tart Cherries (Preliminary)
I-3.

Ownership.--Is your firm owned, in whole or in part, by any other firm?
No

Firm name

I-4.

Page 5

Yes--List the following information

Address

Extent of
ownership
(percent)

Related importers/exporters.--Does your firm have any related firms, either domestic or
foreign, that are engaged in importing dried tart cherries from Turkey into the United States or
that are engaged in exporting dried tart cherries from Turkey to the United States?
No
Firm name

Yes--List the following information.
Country

Affiliation

Business Proprietary
U.S. Importers’ Questionnaire – Dried Tart Cherries (Preliminary)
I-5.

Related producers.--Does your firm have any related firms, either domestic or foreign, that are
engaged in the production of dried tart cherries?
No

Yes--List the following information.

Firm name

I-6.

Country

Affiliation

Importing operations.--Please indicate the nature of your firm’s importing operations on dried
tart cherries. More than one answer may be applicable.
Importer of record

I-7.

Page 6

Takes title to the
imported product(s)

Consignee of the
imported products(s)

Customs broker or
freight forwarder

Consignee.--If your firm is an importer of record of dried tart cherries but is not the consignee,
please list the consignees below (firm name, address, telephone number, and individual to
contact).

Firm name

Address

Contact person
and phone
number

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U.S. Importers’ Questionnaire – Dried Tart Cherries (Preliminary)
I-8.

Page 7

FTZ, TIB, or bonded warehouses.--Please indicate whether your firm enters dried tart cherries
into, or withdraws such merchandise from, foreign trade zones or bonded warehouses. Also
indicate whether your firm imports dried tart cherries under the TIB (temporary importation
under bond) program.
“Foreign trade zone” is a designated location in the United States where firms utilize special
procedures that allow delayed or reduced customs duty payments on foreign merchandise, as
well as other savings. A foreign trade zone must be designated as such pursuant to the rules
and procedures set forth in the Foreign-Trade Zones Act.
“Bonded warehouse” is a secured facility supervised by U.S. customs, where dutiable landed
imports are stored pending their re-export, or release after payment of import duties, taxes, and
other charges. A bonded warehouse must be designed as such pursuant to the rules and
procedures set forth in 19 U.S.C. § 1555.
“Temporary Importation under Bond (“TIB”) program” is a procedure whereby imported
merchandise may be entered under certain conditions for a limited time into the United States
free of duty. Under the program, an importer posts a bond for twice the amount of duty, taxes,
etc. that would otherwise be owed on the importation and agrees to export or destroy the
merchandise within a specified time or pay liquidated damages. This program is restricted to
certain categories of merchandise listed in subheadings 9813.00.05 through 9813.00.75 of the
Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTS).
Item

No

Yes

Foreign trade zones
Bonded warehouses
Temporary importation under bond

I-9.

Other trade actions.--To your knowledge, have the products subject to this proceeding been the
subject of any other import relief proceedings in the United States or in any other countries?
No

Yes

If yes, Yes–Please specify.

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PART II.--TRADE AND RELATED INFORMATION
Further information on this part of the questionnaire can be obtained from Calvin Chang (202-205-3062,
[email protected]) Supply all data requested on a calendar-year basis.
II-1.

Contact information.--Please identify the responsible individual and the manner by which
Commission staff may contact that individual regarding the confidential information submitted
in part II.
Name
Title
Email
Telephone

II-2.

Changes in operations.--Please indicate whether your firm has experienced any of the following
changes in relation to the importation of dried tart cherries since January 1, 2016.
(check as many as appropriate)
office/warehouse openings
office/warehouse closings
relocations
expansions
acquisitions
consolidations
prolonged shutdowns or
importation curtailments
revised labor agreements
other (e.g., technology)

(If checked, please describe; leave blank if not applicable)

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U.S. Importers’ Questionnaire – Dried Tart Cherries (Preliminary)
II-3a.

Page 9

Arranged imports.--Has your firm imported or arranged for the importation of dried tart
cherries for delivery after December 31, 2018?
“Arranged imports” are imports for which your firm has placed an order with a foreign supplier
for subject merchandise, but delivery of those imports is not scheduled to occur until after the
date listed above.
No

Yes

If yes, fill out the table below.

Period
Source

Jan-Mar 2019

Apr-Jun 2019

Jul-Sept 2019

Oct-Dec 2019

Quantity (in pounds)
Turkey
Other sources
II-3b.

Imports in the 12 month period preceding the petitions.--Has your firm imported dried tart
cherries from any source between April 1, 2018 and March 31, 2019? (i.e., the last nine months
in 2018 and first three months in 2019 combined)
No

Yes

If yes, report the quantity of such import below by source.

Quantity (in pounds)
Source

April 2018 through March 2019

Turkey
Other sources
II-4.

Reasons for importing if producer.--If your firm also produces dried tart cherries in the United
States, please indicate the reasons for importing this product. If your firm’s reasons differ by
source, please elaborate.

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Definitions
“Imports” –Those products identified for Customs purposes as imports for consumption for
which your firm was the importer of record (i.e., was responsible for paying any import duty) or
consignee (i.e., to which the merchandise was first delivered).
“Import quantities” –Quantities reported should be net of returns.
“Import values”—Values reported should be landed, duty-paid values at the U.S. port of entry,
including ocean freight and insurance costs, brokerage charges, and import duties (i.e., all
charges except inland freight in the United States).
“U.S. commercial shipments”— Shipments made within the United States as a result of an arm’s
length commercial transaction in the ordinary course of business. Report net values (i.e., gross
sales values less all discounts, allowances, rebates, prepaid freight, and the value of returned
goods) in U.S. dollars, f.o.b. your point of shipment.
“Internal consumption” –Product consumed internally by your firm. Such transactions are
valued at fair market value.
“Transfers to related firms” –Shipments made to related firms. Such transactions are valued at
fair market value.
“Related firm” –A firm that your firm solely or jointly owned, managed, or otherwise controlled;
a firm that solely or jointly owned, managed, or otherwise controlled your firm; and/or a firm
that was solely or jointly owned, managed, or otherwise controlled by a firm that also solely or
jointly owned, managed, or otherwise controlled your firm.
“Export shipments”— Shipments to destinations outside the United States, including shipments
to related firms.
“Inventories” --Finished goods inventory, not raw materials or work in progress.
Note: As requested in Part I of this questionnaire, please keep all supporting documents/records
used in the preparation of the trade data, as Commission staff may contact your firm regarding
questions on the trade data. The Commission may also request that your company submit copies
of the supporting documents/records (such as production and sales schedules, inventory records,
etc.) used to compile these data.

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U.S. Importers’ Questionnaire – Dried Tart Cherries (Preliminary)
II-5a.

Page 11

U.S. imports from Turkey.–Report your firm’s imports and your firm’s shipments and
inventories of dried tart cherries imported from Turkey by your firm during the specified
periods.

Turkey
Quantity (in pounds), value (in actual dollars)
Calendar years
Item

2016

2017

2018

Beginning-of-period inventories
(quantity) (A)
Imports:1
Quantity (B)
Value (C)
U.S. shipments:
Commercial shipments:
Quantity (D)
Value (E)
Internal consumption:2
Quantity (F)
Value2 (G)
Transfers to related firms:2
Quantity (H)
Value2 (I)
Export shipments:3
Quantity (J)
Value (K)
End-of-period inventories
(quantity) (L)
Please identify the foreign producers, if known:
.
Internal consumption and transfers to related firms must be valued at fair market value. If your firm uses a different
basis for valuing these transactions in your records, please specify that basis (e.g., cost, cost plus, etc.):
. However,
the data provided above in this table should be based on fair market value.
3
Identify your firm’s principal export markets:
.
1
2

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II-5a.

Page 12

U.S. imports from Turkey.–Continued

RECONCILIATION OF SHIPMENTS, IMPORTS, AND INVENTORIES.--Generally, the data reported for the
end-of-period inventories (i.e., line L) should be equal to the beginning-of-period inventories (i.e., line
A), plus imports (i.e., line B), less total shipments (i.e., lines D, F, H, and J). Please ensure that any
differences are not due to data entry errors in completing this form, but rather actually reflect your
firm’s records; and also provide any likely explanations for any differences (e.g., theft, loss, damage,
record systems issues, etc.) if they exist.
Calendar years
Reconciliation

2016

2017

A + B – D – F – H – J – L = should equal
zero ("0") or provide an explanation.1

2018

0

0

0

Explanation if the calculated fields above are returning values other than zero (i.e., “0”) but are nonetheless
accurate:
.
1

II-5b.

Channels of distribution: Turkey.--Report your firm’s U.S. shipments (i.e., inclusive of
commercial U.S. shipments, internal consumption, and transfers to related firms) of imports of
dried tart cherries from Turkey by channel of distribution.

Turkey
Quantity (in pounds)
Calendar years
Item

2016

2017

2018

Channels of distribution:
U.S. shipments:
To distributors (M)
To retailers (N)
To end users (O)
RECONCILIATION OF CHANNELS.--Please ensure that the quantities reported for channels of distribution
(i.e., lines M through O) in each time period equal the quantity reported for commercial U.S. shipments
(i.e., lines D, F, and H) in each time period. If the calculated fields below return values other than zero
(i.e., “0”), the data reported must be revised prior to submission to the Commission.
Calendar years
Reconciliation item
M + N + O – D – F – H= zero ("0"), if
not revise.

2016

2017
0

2018
0

0

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II-6a. U.S. imports from all other sources.–Report your firm’s imports and your firm’s shipments and
inventories of dried tart cherries imported from all other sources by your firm during the
specified periods.

(list sources:

All other sources

)
Quantity (in pounds), value (in actual dollars)
Calendar years

Item

2016

2017

2018

Beginning-of-period inventories
(quantity) (A)
Imports:1
Quantity (B)
Value (C)
U.S. shipments:
Commercial shipments:
Quantity (D)
Value (E)
Internal consumption:2
Quantity (F)
Value2 (G)
Transfers to related firms:2
Quantity (H)
Value2 (I)
Export shipments:3
Quantity (J)
Value (K)
End-of-period inventories
(quantity) (L)
Please identify the foreign producers, if known:
.
Internal consumption and transfers to related firms must be valued at fair market value. If your firm uses a different
basis for valuing these transactions in your records, please specify that basis (e.g., cost, cost plus, etc.):
. However,
the data provided above in this table should be based on fair market value.
3
Identify your firm’s principal export markets:
.
1
2

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U.S. Importers’ Questionnaire – Dried Tart Cherries (Preliminary)
II-6a.

Page 14

Imports from all other sources.–Continued

RECONCILIATION OF SHIPMENTS, IMPORTS, AND INVENTORIES.--Generally, the data reported for the
end-of-period inventories (i.e., line L) should be equal to the beginning-of-period inventories (i.e., line
A), plus imports (i.e., line B), less total shipments (i.e., lines D, F, H, and J). Please ensure that any
differences are not due to data entry errors in completing this form, but rather actually reflect your
firm’s records; and also provide any likely explanations for any differences (e.g., theft, loss, damage,
record systems issues, etc.) if they exist.
Calendar years
Reconciliation

2016

2017

A + B – D – F – H – J – L = should equal
zero ("0") or provide an explanation.1

0

2018
0

0

Explanation if the calculated fields above are returning values other than zero (i.e., “0”) but are nonetheless
accurate:
.
1

II-6b.

Channels of distribution: All other sources.-- Report your firm’s U.S. shipments (i.e., inclusive of
commercial U.S. shipments, internal consumption, and transfers to related firms) of imports of
dried tart cherries from all other sources by channel of distribution.

All other sources
Quantity (in pounds)
Calendar years
Item

2016

2017

2018

Channels of distribution:
U.S. shipments:
To distributors (M)
To retailers (N)
To end users (O)
RECONCILIATION OF CHANNELS.--Please ensure that the quantities reported for channels of distribution
(i.e., lines M through O) in each time period equal the quantity reported for commercial U.S. shipments
(i.e., lines D, F, and H) in each time period. If the calculated fields below return values other than zero
(i.e., “0”), the data reported must be revised prior to submission to the Commission.
Calendar years
Reconciliation item
M + N + O – D – F – H = zero ("0"), if
not revise.

2016

2017
0

2018
0

0

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II-7.

Transfers to related firms.-- If your firm reported transfers to related firms in any of the data
tables in part II, please identify the firm(s) and indicate the nature of the relationship between
your firm and the related firms (e.g., joint venture, wholly owned subsidiary) and whether the
transfers were priced at market value or by a non-market formula.

II-8.

Other explanations.--If your firm would like to further explain a response to a question in Part II
for which a narrative response box was not provided, please note the question number and the
explanation in the space provided below. Please also use this space to highlight any issues your
firm had in providing the data in this section, including but not limited to technical issues with
the MS Word questionnaire.

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PART III.--PRICING AND MARKET FACTORS
Further information on this part of the questionnaire can be obtained from James Horne (202-205-2722,
[email protected]).
III-1.

Contact information.--Please identify the responsible individual and the manner by which
Commission staff may contact that individual regarding the confidential information submitted
in part III.
Name
Title
Email
Telephone

PRICE DATA
III-2.

This question requests quarterly quantity and value data for your firm’s commercial shipments
to unrelated U.S. customers since January 1, 2016 of the following products your firm imported
from Turkey:
Product 1.--Dried tart cherries, pitted, whole, and infused, sold in bulk containers, i.e., in 20pound to 40-pound bags or boxes.
Product 2.-- Dried tart cherries, pitted, chopped, diced, or sliced, and infused, sold in bulk
containers, i.e., in 20-pound to 40-pound bags or boxes.
Product 3.-- Dried tart cherries, pitted, whole, and not infused, sold in 5-pound to 10-pound
bags or boxes.
Product 4.-- Dried tart cherries, pitted, whole, and infused, sold in 5-pound to 10-pound bags or
boxes.
Product 5.-- Dried tart cherries, pitted, whole, and infused, sold in packages for retail sale (bags
or boxes), weighing four pounds or less each.

Please note that values should be f.o.b., U.S. point of shipment and should not include U.S.-inland
transportation costs. Values should reflect the final net amount paid to your firm (i.e., should be net
of all deductions for discounts or rebates).
III-2a. During January 2016- December 2018, did your firm import from Turkey and sell to unrelated
U.S. customers any of the above listed products (or any products that were competitive with
these products)?
Yes.--Please complete the following pricing data table as appropriate.
No.--Skip to question III-3.

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III-2b. Price data.--Report below the quarterly price data1 for pricing products2 imported from Turkey
and sold by your firm.

Turkey

Report data in pounds and actual dollars (not 1,000s).
Product 1

(Quantity in pounds, value in dollars)
Product 2
Value
Quantity
Value

Product 3
Period of shipment
Quantity
Quantity
Value
2016:
January-March
April-June
July-September
October-December
2017:
January-March
April-June
July-September
October-December
2018:
January-March
April-June
July-September
October-December
1 Net values (i.e., gross sales values less all discounts, allowances, rebates, prepaid freight, and the value of returned goods), f.o.b. your firm’s
U.S. point of shipment.
2 Pricing product definitions are provided on the first page of Part III.
Note.--If your firm’s product does not exactly meet the product specifications but is competitive with the specified product, provide a description of
your firm’s product. Also, please explain any anomalies in your firm’s reported pricing data.
Product 1:
Product 2:
Product 3:

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III-2b. Price data—Continued
Report data in pounds and actual dollars (not 1,000s).
(Quantity in pounds, value in dollars)
Product 4
Value

Product 5
Period of shipment
Quantity
Quantity
Value
2016:
January-March
April-June
July-September
October-December
2017:
January-March
April-June
July-September
October-December
2018:
January-March
April-June
July-September
October-December
1 Net values (i.e., gross sales values less all discounts, allowances, rebates, prepaid freight, and the value of returned goods), f.o.b. your firm’s
U.S. point of shipment.
2 Pricing product definitions are provided on the first page of Part III.
Note.--If your firm’s product does not exactly meet the product specifications but is competitive with the specified product, provide a description of
your firm’s product. Also, please explain any anomalies in your firm’s reported pricing data.
Product 4:
Product 5:

Business Proprietary
U.S. Importers’ Questionnaire – Dried Tart Cherries (Preliminary)
III-2c.

Page 19

Price data checklist.--Please check that the pricing data in question III-2(a) has been correctly
reported.
Is the price data reported above:

√ if Yes

In actual dollars (not $1,000)?
F.o.b. U.S. point of shipment (i.e., does not include U.S. transport costs)?
Net of all discounts and rebates?
Have returns credited to the quarter in which the sale occurred?
Less than reported commercial shipments in part II-5a in each year?
III-2d. Pricing data methodology.--Please describe the method and the kinds of documents/records
that were used to compile your price data.

Note: As requested in Part I of this questionnaire, please keep all supporting documents/records used in
the preparation of the price data, as Commission staff may contact your firm regarding questions on the
price data. The Commission may also request that your company submit copies of the supporting
documents/records (such as sales journal, invoices, etc.) used to compile these data.

Business Proprietary
U.S. Importers’ Questionnaire – Dried Tart Cherries (Preliminary)
III-3.

Price setting.--How does your firm determine the prices that it charges for sales of dried tart
cherries (check all that apply)? If your firm issues price lists, please submit sample pages of a
recent list.
Transaction
by
transaction

III-4.

Contracts

Annual
total
volume
discounts

No

If other, describe

No
discount
policy

Other

Describe

F.o.b.

If f.o.b., specify point

Contract versus spot.--Approximately what share of your firm’s sales of dried tart cherries
imported from Turkey in 2018 was on a (1) short-term contract basis, (2) annual contract basis,
(3) long-term contract basis, and (4) spot sales basis?

Item
Share of 2018
sales
III-7.

Other

Pricing terms.-- On what basis are your firm’s prices of imported dried tart cherries from Turkey
usually quoted (check one)?
Delivered

III-6.

Set
price
lists

Discount policy.--Please indicate and describe your firm’s discount policies (check all that apply).

Quantity
discounts

III-5.

Page 20

Type of sale
Long-term
Annual
contracts
contracts
(multiple
(multiple
deliveries for
deliveries for 12
more than 12
months)
months)

Short-term
contracts
(multiple
deliveries for
less than 12
months)
%

%

%

Total
(should
sum to
100.0%)

Spot sales
(for a single
delivery)
%

0.0

%

Bundling sales.--Does your frim bundle sales of dried tart cherries with other products?

Yes

If yes, describe other products that are typically sold in bundles with dried tart
cherries

Business Proprietary
U.S. Importers’ Questionnaire – Dried Tart Cherries (Preliminary)
III-8.

Page 21

Contract provisions.— Please fill out the table regarding your firm’s typical sales contracts for
dried tart cherries imported from Turkey (or check “not applicable” if your firm does not sell on
a short-term, annual and/or long-term contract basis).
Short-term contracts
(multiple deliveries
for less than 12
months)

Typical sales
contract provisions

Item

Average contract
duration

No. of
days

Price renegotiation
(during contract
period)

Yes

Fixed quantity
and/or price

Annual contracts
(multiple
deliveries for 12
months)

Long-term contracts
(multiple deliveries
for more than 12
months)

365

No
Quantity

Indexed to raw
material costs1

Price
Both
Yes
No

Not applicable
1

Please identify the indexes used:

III-9.

.

Lead times.--What is your firm’s share of sales of dried tart cherries imported from Turkey from
inventory and produced to order and what is the typical lead time between a customer’s order
and the date of delivery for your firm’s sales of dried tart cherries?

Source

Lead time
(Average number
Share of 2018 sales
of days)

From your firm’s U.S. inventory

%

From foreign producers inventory

%

Produced to order

%

Total (should sum to 100.0%)

0.0 %

Business Proprietary
U.S. Importers’ Questionnaire – Dried Tart Cherries (Preliminary)

Page 22

III-10. Shipping information.—
(a)

What is the approximate percentage of the cost of dried tart cherries imported from
Turkey that is accounted for by U.S. inland transportation costs?
percent.

(b)

Who generally arranges the transportation to your firm’s customers’ locations?
Your firm
Purchaser (check one)

(c)

When your firm sells dried tart cherries imported from Turkey, from where is it shipped?
Point of importation
Storage facility (check one)

(d)

Indicate the approximate percentage of your firm’s sales of dried tart cherries imported
from Turkey that are delivered the following distances from your firm’s U.S. point of
shipment.
Distance from your firm’s U.S. point of shipment

Share

Within 100 miles

%

101 to 1,000 miles

%

Over 1,000 miles

%

Total (should sum to 100.0%)

0.0

%

III-11. Geographical shipments.--In which U.S. geographic market area(s) has your firm sold dried tart
cherries imported from subject countries since January 1, 2016 (check all that apply)?
Geographic area
Northeast.–CT, ME, MA, NH, NJ, NY, PA, RI, and VT.
Midwest.–IL, IN, IA, KS, MI, MN, MO, NE, ND, OH, SD, and WI.
Southeast.–AL, DE, DC, FL, GA, KY, MD, MS, NC, SC, TN, VA, and WV.
Central Southwest.–AR, LA, OK, and TX.
Mountains.–AZ, CO, ID, MT, NV, NM, UT, and WY.
Pacific Coast.–CA, OR, and WA.
Other.–All other markets in the United States not previously listed,
including AK, HI, PR, and VI.

Turkey

Business Proprietary
U.S. Importers’ Questionnaire – Dried Tart Cherries (Preliminary)

Page 23

III-12. End uses.--List the end uses of the dried tart cherries that your firm imports. For each end-use
product, what percentage of the total cost is accounted for by dried tart cherries and other
inputs?
Share of total cost of end-use product
accounted for by
End-use product

Dried tart cherries

Total
(should sum to
100.0% across)

Other inputs

%

%

0.0 %

%

%

0.0 %

%

%

0.0 %

III-13. Substitutes.--Can other products be substituted for dried tart cherries?
No

Substitute

Yes--Please fill out the table.

End use in which this
substitute is used

Have changes in the price of this substitute
affected the price for dried tart cherries?
No Yes

Explanation

1.
2.
3.

III-15. Demand trends.--Indicate how demand within the United States and outside of the United
States (if known) for dried tart cherries has changed since January 1, 2016. Explain any trends
and describe the principal factors that have affected these changes in demand.

Market
Within the United States
Outside the United States

Overall
increase

No
Overall Fluctuate with
change decrease no clear trend

Explanation and factors

Business Proprietary
U.S. Importers’ Questionnaire – Dried Tart Cherries (Preliminary)

Page 24

III-16. Product changes.--Have there been any significant changes in the product range, product mix or
marketing of dried tart cherries since January 1, 2016?
No

Yes

If yes, please describe.

III-17. Conditions of competition.—
(a) Is the dried tart cherries market subject to business cycles (other than general economywide conditions) and/or other conditions of competition distinctive to dried tart cherries?
Check all that apply.

Please describe.

No

Skip to question III-18.

Yes-Business cycles (e.g.
seasonal business)
Yes-Other distinctive
conditions of competition
(b) If yes, have there been any changes in the business cycles or conditions of competition for
dried tart cherries since January 1, 2016?
No

Yes

If yes, describe.

(c) Did weather or natural disasters in the United States, Turkey, or other countries affect the
availability and/or prices of dried tart cherries?
Source
United
States
Turkey
All other
countries

No

Yes

If yes, describe.

Business Proprietary
U.S. Importers’ Questionnaire – Dried Tart Cherries (Preliminary)

Page 25

III-18. Supply constraints.--Has your firm refused, declined, or been unable to supply dried tart
cherries since January 1, 2016 (examples include placing customers on allocation or “controlled
order entry,” declining to accept new customers or renew existing customers, delivering less
than the quantity promised, being unable to meet timely shipment commitments, etc.)?
No

Yes

If yes, please describe.

III-19. Raw materials.-- Indicate how the raw material cost of producing dried tart cherries changed
since January 1, 2016?
Fluctuate Explain, noting how production cost changes have
Overall
No
Overall
with no
affected your firm’s selling prices for dried tart
increase change decrease clear trend
cherries.

III-20. Interchangeability.--Are dried tart cherries produced in the United States and in other countries
interchangeable (i.e., can they physically be used in the same applications)?
Please indicate A, F, S, N, or 0 in the table below:
A = the products from a specified country-pair are always interchangeable
F = the products are frequently interchangeable
S = the products are sometimes interchangeable
N = the products are never interchangeable
0 = no familiarity with products from a specified country-pair
Country-pair

Turkey

Other countries

United States
Turkey
For any country-pair producing dried tart cherries that is sometimes or never
interchangeable, identify the country-pair and explain the factors that limit or
preclude interchangeable use:

Business Proprietary
U.S. Importers’ Questionnaire – Dried Tart Cherries (Preliminary)

Page 26

III-21. Factors other than price.--Are differences other than price (e.g., quality, availability,
transportation network, product range, technical support, etc.) between dried tart cherries
produced in the United States and in other countries a significant factor in your firm’s sales of
the products?
Please indicate A, F, S, N, or 0 in the table below:
A = such differences are always significant
F = such differences are frequently significant
S = such differences are sometimes significant
N = such differences are never significant
0 = no familiarity with products from a specified country-pair
Country-pair

Turkey

Other countries

United States
Turkey
For any country-pair for which factors other than price always or frequently are a
significant factor in your firm’s sales of dried tart cherries, identify the country-pair
and report the advantages or disadvantages imparted by such factors:

Business Proprietary
U.S. Importers’ Questionnaire – Dried Tart Cherries (Preliminary)

Page 27

III-22. Customer identification.--List the names and contact information for your firm’s 10 largest U.S.
customers for dried tart cherries since January 1, 2016. Indicate the share of the quantity of
your firm’s total shipments of dried tart cherries that each of these customers accounted for in
2018.

Customer’s name

Contact person

Email

Telephone

City

State

Share
of
2018
sales
(%)

1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10

III-23. Other explanations.--If your firm would like to further explain a response to a question in Part III
for which a narrative response box was not provided, please note the question number and the
explanation in the space provided below. Please also use this space to highlight any issues your
firm had in providing the data in this section, including but not limited to technical issues with
the MS Word questionnaire.

Business Proprietary
U.S. Importers’ Questionnaire – Dried Tart Cherries (Preliminary)

Page 28

Correcting Valid number error messages.--If you are completing a Commission

questionnaire in a country that uses periods (“.”) to delineate multiples of 1000 (e.g., one million would
appear as $1.000.000 instead of as $1,000,000), you may be unable to enter in numbers greater than
999 in numeric form fields. This issues stem from your computer number formatting setting (e.g., not
the MS Word document itself, but the computer from which you are opening up the document). In the
United States commas (,) delineate multiples of 1000 and periods (.) delineate fractions less than one.
Many EU countries use the reverse where multiples of 1000 are delineated with periods (.) and
fractions less than one are delineated with commas (,). The US International Trade Commission’s
questionnaires are set-up in the United States with the U.S. number formatting. When this formatting
interacts with a computer set to EU number formatting, we believe this may cause this issue.
The solution to this data entry issue is to temporarily change your operating system’s number
formatting to be consistent with the U.S. number formatting system while you complete the
questionnaire.
To temporarily change your computer’s number settings to U.S. settings, please do the following (for
Microsoft Windows Operating system):
•
•
•
•
•

START
Control Panel
Region and Language (under Clock, Language, and Region category)
Format tab
Change the Format from your existing one (e.g. “Italian (Italy)”) to “English (United States)” (see
screen shots below)

When you do this the number “twelve million dollars and thirty five cents” would change from
$12.000.000,35 (Italy format) to $12,000,000.35 (U.S. format), and then there will be no conflict with
the questionnaire. When you finish reporting the data then you can close the questionnaire and switch
back to Italy settings.

Business Proprietary
U.S. Importers’ Questionnaire – Dried Tart Cherries (Preliminary)

Page 29

HOW TO FILE YOUR QUESTIONNAIRE RESPONSE
This questionnaire is available as a “fillable” form in MS Word format on the
Commission’s website at:
https://www.usitc.gov/investigations/701731/2019/dried_tart_cherries_turkey/prelimi
nary.htm.
Please do not attempt to modify the format or permissions of the questionnaire
document. Please submit the completed questionnaire using one of the methods noted
below. If your firm is unable to complete the MS Word questionnaire or cannot use one
of the electronic methods of submission, please contact the Commission for further
instructions.
• Upload via Secure Drop Box.—Upload the MS Word questionnaire along with a scanned copy of the
signed certification page (page 1) through the Commission’s secure upload facility:
Web address: https://dropbox.usitc.gov/oinv/

Pin: TART

• E-mail.—E-mail the MS Word questionnaire to [email protected]; include a scanned copy of
the signed certification page (page 1). Submitters are strongly encouraged to encrypt nonpublic
documents that are electronically transmitted to the Commission to protect your sensitive information
from unauthorized disclosure. The USITC secure drop-box system and the Electronic Document
Information System (EDIS) use Federal Information Processing Standards (FIPS) 140-2 cryptographic
algorithms to encrypt data in transit. Submitting your nonpublic documents by a means that does not
use these encryption algorithms (such as by email) may subject your firm’s nonpublic information to
unauthorized disclosure during transmission. If you choose a non-encrypted method of electronic
transmission, the Commission warns you that the risk of such possible unauthorized disclosure is
assumed by you and not by the Commission.
If your firm did not import this product, please fill out page 1, print, sign, and submit a scanned copy to
the Commission.
Parties to this proceeding.—If your firm is a party to this proceeding, it is required to serve a copy of the
completed questionnaire on parties to the proceeding that are subject to administrative protective
order (see 19 CFR § 207.7). A list of such parties may be obtained from the Commission’s Secretary (202205-1803). A certificate of service must accompany the completed questionnaire you submit (see 19 CFR
§ 207.7). Service of the questionnaire must be made in paper form.