Were sales of a bottled meat-and-poultry marinade and a dry herb-and-spice blend subject to Florida sales tax?

Plain-English summary

The bottled marinade and dry spice blend were exempt general grocery items.

The marinade was a sealed liquid made from canola oil, vegetable juice, vinegar, onion, parsley, garlic, and pepper and was intended to flavor or tenderize meat and poultry before cooking. The Department treated it like other exempt sauces.

The sealed dry blend of onion, parsley, garlic, basil, oregano, and pepper was exempt in the same manner as other spices.

The result covered the described sales to local meat markets and gourmet food shops and direct sales to the public at school and church bazaars.

What this means for you

The ruling classified the products by their stated ingredients, packaging, and use as ordinary grocery sauces and spices.

Common questions

Q: Was the marinade taxable because sauces were not expressly listed in the rule?
A: No. The Department said the list was not exhaustive and treated marinade as an exempt sauce.

Q: Was the dry seasoning blend taxable?
A: No. It was treated as exempt spices.

Q: Did the result cover both wholesale and direct public sales?
A: Yes, for the described channels.

Citations and references

• Fla. Stat. § 212.08(1)(a) — general-grocery exemption
• Fla. Admin. Code r. 12A-1.011(1)(a) — food and grocery items
• Fla. Stat. § 213.22 — Technical Assistance Advisements

Source

• Landing page: Florida Tax Law Library
• Advisement: TAA 95A-019

Original ruling text

May 04, 1995

Re: TAA 95A-019
Sale of Food Products
Section 212.08(1)(a), F.S.
Rule 12A-1.011(1)(a), f.A.C.

Dear :

This is in response to your letter of February 22, 1995, in
which you requested the issuance of a technical assistance
advisement regarding the taxability of your sale of the below listed
food products to local meat markets and gourmet food shops, as well
as to the general public at local craft shows, school and church
bazaars in the near future.

1) XXXXX - Is a liquid, packaged in an 8 ounce glass bottle
sealed with a tamper proof plastic seal, which is
formulated to be poured over meats and poultry
prior to cooking as a basic marinade product. The
ingredients are: 100% canola oil, vegetable juice,
vinegar, dry onion, parsley, garlic and pepper.

2) XXXXX - Is a combination of dry ingredients, which include
onion, parsley, garlic, basil, oregano, and pepper,
which is for the purpose of adding to food during
the cooking process to enhance food flavor. It is
sold in a 4 ounce glass jar sealed with a tamper
proof plastic seal.

APPLICABLE AUTHORITY

For guidance in determining whether or not the above food
products are subject to sales tax we look to section 212.08(1)(a),
F. S., and Rule 12A-1.011(1)(a), F.A.C.

Section 212.08(1)(a), F.S., provides in part;

"(1) EXEMPTIONS; GENERAL GROCERIES."(a) There are exempt from the tax imposed by this chapter food
and drinks for human consumption except candy...."

Rule 12A-1.011(1)(a), F.A.C., provides in pertinent part:

"(1)(a) Except as otherwise provided in this section, tax does
not apply to sales of food and drink for human consumption
which are considered general groceries items. General grocery
items include but are not limited to,... spices and salt...."

DEPARTMENT RESPONSE
Section 212.08(1)(a), F.S., provides that sales tax does not
apply to the sale of food and drinks for human consumption which are
considered general grocery items. Rule 12A-1.011(1)(a), F.A.C.,
gives examples of general grocery items and states that it does not
list all products which are considered to be general grocery items.
The rule does list as general grocery items, products such as spices
and salt. Some products which the Department considers to be exempt
general grocery items are sauces, such as catsup and bar-b-que
sauce. Marinade products are considered to be sauces which are used
to enrich the flavor of or tenderize meats and poultry. Although
sauces are not specifically listed in Rule 12A-1.011(1)(a), F.A.C.,
as general grocery items which are exempt from tax, they are
nevertheless considered to be general grocery item by the Department
and are not subject to tax. Therefore, your sales of "XXXXX" to
local meat markets and gourmet food shops, as well as to the general
public at school bazaars and church bazaars, are not subject to tax.

Also, your sales of "XXXXX" in the areas mentioned above are
exempt from tax as sales of a general grocery item in the same
manner as other spices such salt pepper. oregano, basil and other
spices.

This response constitutes a Technical Assistance Advisement
under s. 213.22, F.S., which is binding on the department only under
the facts and circumstances described in the request for this advice
as specified in s. 213.22, F.S. Our response is predicated on those
facts and the specific situation summarized above. You are advised
that subsequent statutory or administrative rule changes or judicial
interpretations of the statutes or rules upon which this advice is

based may subject similar future transactions to a different
treatment than expressed in this response.

You are further advised that this response and your request are
public records under Chapter 119, F.S., which are subject to
disclosure to the public under the conditions of s. 213.22, F.S.
Your name, address, and any other details which might lead to
identification of the taxpayer must be deleted by the Department
before disclosure. In an effort to protect the confidentiality of
such information, we request you notify the undersigned in writing
within 15 days of any deletions you wish made to the request or the
response.

Sincerely,

Richard S. Harrod
Technical Assistant

RSH/h
Control No. 19918