In Beijing, the price of domestic-produced beef is sold at an average of 40 yuan ($5.85) per kilogram, while the price of smuggled beef could be as low as 25 yuan.

In Guangzhou, a mainland city located just 120 kilometers from Hong Kong, smuggled cattle meat from the US is popular among locals due to its cheaper price, the Southern Metropolis Daily reported.

An employee in the sales department of a Qingdao-based trading company, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, told the Global Times that importing beef from the US and Canada is part of their business.

"All US-produced beef sold in the mainland market is smuggled through Hong Kong. A large part goes to restaurants," he said.

"The smuggled beef is safe to eat since the meat is tagged with official quality-inspection and quarantine certificates. The imported beef is cheaper and tastes better than the domestically produced," he insisted.

Back in 2008, law enforcement officials in Dongguan city destroyed more than 100 tons of illegally imported beef, half of which was from mad cow disease-affected areas, the Guangzhou Daily reported.

The Shanghai-based Oriental Morning News reported in July that Kobe beef being served in the Chinese market had been smuggled.

The continued illegal entry of beef into China has become a matter of public concern.

"I have bought only beef produced domestically in the supermarket since mad cow disease broke out. But when I eat in restaurants, it's hard to know if the beef is safe," Zhang Rui, a consumer in Beijing, told the Global Times.

Fan Zhihui, a food-safety expert at China Agriculture University, told the Global Times that "There is great risk behind the smuggled beef that enters the Chinese market without quality inspection and supervision."

Fan warned that Chinese consumers should be cautious in purchasing beef, since they might contain fatal viruses.

"Relevant departments should enhance supervision to prevent such meat from enter-ing China," she urged.

(China.org.cn September 11, 2010)