BEIJING - Foreign athletes need not worry about food safety in China, and the consumption of small amounts of steroid-tainted meat were unlikely to lead to positive drug tests, said Zhao Jian, deputy director of the China Anti-Doping Agency.

According to the National Anti-Doping Agency (NADA) of Germany, a recent study has shown an increased risk in Mexico and China of unintentional doping with the prohibited bodybuilding substance clenbuterol, which is often used to speed up growth and increase muscle mass in animals.

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NADA Germany therefore recommended that athletes visiting China be very cautious about eating in these countries. The consumption of meat products should be avoided as far as possible.

Foreign countries have long questioned China over its environmental pollution and food safety, especially before the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

Zhao said that China could guarantee food safety for major sports events and that European countries were overreacting.

"Foreign athletes and organizations should be assured about the quality of food offered in China, because all the food purchased for big sports events is closely examined," Zhao told China Daily.

"There's also nothing to be afraid of for Chinese athletes, as domestic teams always train together and the food supplied for the training base is strictly inspected.

"China annually holds 100 to 200 domestic and international sports events, and the problem would have been exposed long before if any food was contaminated," he said.

"We select 1,500 athletes at random for drug-testing every year, and the results rarely appear positive."

Zhao also doubted the scientific base of NADA's warning.

"Food contamination is a worldwide problem," Zhao said. "Any people or organizations should produce authoritative reports when evaluating food safety in another country, instead of misleading athletes with simple and separate statistics.

"Indeed, there are some Chinese dealers who use illegal additives to feed animals and the substance might be left in the meat, but the chances of this leading to a positive drug test are very small."