THERE are growing reports of attempted wholesale meat sales scams on the internet, mostly directed at unsuspecting importers, exporters and end-users.

The latest involves a source claiming to be representing United States second-tier retail supermarket proprietor Giant Eagle, which operates 200+ stores across Pennsylvania, Ohio, West Virginia, Indiana, and Maryland.

The email address of the author, seeking quotes on a range of Australian beef products, closely resembles legitimate Giant Eagle email addresses, but is false.

An export meat trade source told Beef Central this morning that there had been growing examples of attempted online fraud involving red meat sales over the past year or so – especially as meat prices had risen and supplies in some countries had become short.

“When supply is tight, some customers might be prepared to take more risks,” the contact said.

The contact’s own company occasionally warned sales staff around the world, via internal emails, about such scams.

In one example quoted, an online scammer had set up a convincing-looking meat packer website, with a wide range of products listed. The scam involved contacting potential unsuspecting customers, doing business and asking for a 30 percent deposit on consignments, which would disappear into thin air.

On a $250,000 meat order, that could net the scammer a cool $75,000.

As always in such cases, due diligence is advised.