Canadian pork exports to China could be at risk, following an incident last week.

It's being reported that a Canadian shipment of pig feet to China, produced by Olymel, has tested positive for ractopamine, which is a banned growth drug.

A spokesman for Oymel says the pig feet were produced at its Vallee-Jonction, Quebec slaughter and processing plant. The company, which is one of Canada's two biggest pork processors, is investigating the cause of the incident.

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) has temporarily banned that particular plant from exporting to China, and has asked the company to retrieve other shipments that are in transit to China.

China is the world's biggest pork consumer and is one of Canada's biggest pork markets.