The Dubai Customs foiled an attempt to smuggle a large consignment of ivory into the country hidden in 40 boxes containing green beans. The customs authorities put the market value of 215 pieces of fine ivory seized at the Jebel Ali Port at around Dhs15million. Contraband The consignment which originated in an African country had sparked suspicion of the customs personnel, who eventually scanned the container to ascertain the presence of contraband. The inspectors then manually searched the boxes and found that it contained ivory from 108 poached elephants of various ages. Poaching has caused a decline of African elephants from millions to a few hundred thousand in the past few decades.