Florida Caribbean Distillers sidestepped a 25% French wine tariff by importing it in bulk

NPR reported in October 2019 that Florida Caribbean Distillers found a loophole in the new 25% tariff on French wine, imposed in the Airbus-Boeing subsidy dispute. The tariffs applied only to wine in bottles of 2 liters or less. So the firm began importing bulk wine in shipping containers fitted with a giant pouch, 'the world's largest wine-in-a-box', and bottling it at its plant between Tampa and Orlando.

National sales VP Dave Steiner said the company had planned the bulk import to serve the fast-growing US French rosé market and that the tariff timing was 'a bit of a gift'. It would sell standard bottles at an expected $8.99 to $9.99 and 375 ml cans at about $3.99, under the brand Le Rosey with the hashtag #TrumpTariffFree. A sauvignon blanc and a pinot noir were planned for the next spring.

The tariff text covered only wine in containers of 2 liters or less.

Bulk shipping already lowers cost per bottle, so the company's plan predated the tariff.

Bottling at home turns a taxed finished product into an untaxed raw ingredient.

Rivals importing bottled wine pay the 25% levy, giving the firm a price edge.

Read how a tariff or rule defines its target; a change in packaging or where a step occurs can legally move a product outside it.

The company planned to keep exploiting the loophole as long as the tariffs remained. An economist quoted by NPR warned that workarounds like this can create an inefficient ecosystem, and that some tariff evasion is less legal than this one.