The smuggling of live animals between Northern Ireland and the Republic has created major problems down the years, but none as great as the crisis endangering our food industry, worth more than £6 billion.
Smuggling is a way of life for some people along the Border. They are not mindless racketeers, but sophisticated, well resourced and well connected.
Many of them own land and trade part-time in anything that will make money, be it cattle, sheep, pigs, animal feedstuff, animal drugs, legal or illegal.
Judges often say in court; "There would be no theft if there were no fences". So there would be no animal smugglers if there were no farmers to buy their wares and sell them to factories.
The Irish economy is in trouble because for nearly two years, since sterling strengthened steeply, sheep have been coming South from Northern Ireland for processing here.
Some of this trade has been legitimate. It has been more profitable to bring sheep from the UK for processing in the Republic to sell on into Continental markets.
There has also been an illegal trade. Sheep have been brought South without documentation. Their ear tags are removed and they are presented to factories as belonging to farmers in the Republic.
These farmers can claim VAT relief of 4.2 per cent, which is worth 3p to 6p per lb depending on the weight of the animal, and having an outlet from a euro currency area is worth another 18p to 20p per lb on sheep.
The Department of Agriculture has confirmed that the animals slaughtered in Athleague, Co Roscommon, were brought in illegally, and the industry knows that this consignment was part of this trade.
The Department appears to have cleared the Kepak factory in Co Roscommon of any wrongdoing in this instance, because it has allowed the factory to continue processing lamb.
Other illegal movements of animals, like the taking of worthless old cows from Northern Ireland to the Republic, removing their tags, giving them a new identity and having them slaughtered at the Irish taxpayers' expense at 90p per lb, presents a great risk to the health of the national herd here.
This is the latest racket being boasted about in the Border lands, and the trade changes virtually every month depending on demand from the markets.
It is impossible to seal the Border. Talk of a "ring of steel" is nonsense.
Even during the height of the Northern conflict, not even the resources of the State and the British army prevented smuggling.
It is very doubtful whether the current controls will keep the smugglers from operating.
They are more likely to see the controls as a challenge than a hindrance.