The killing of Cecil the lion attracted little attention within Zimbabwe, despite an international outcry. But the elephant deal is becoming far more controversial, seen by critics as a desperate attempt to sell off precious natural resources.

The Zimbabwe Independent reported last week that 24 of the country’s elephants have already reached China and 170 are due to be shipped soon.

“The baby elephants, which are between two-and-a-half and five years old, are being given limited feeding as part of the preparations,” the newspaper reported. The government has confirmed that 24 elephants have already been shipped to China, but has not said how many more are on the way.

Although the Zimbabwean government hasn’t said how much the deal is worth, conservationists estimate that an elephant would likely be sold for roughly US$50,000. The plan to sell the elephants to China is all the more controversial because demand for ivory among Chinese consumers has recently propelled poaching to historic levels.

Hunters kill the elephants and hack off their tusks to get the ivory, which sells on the black market for nearly $1,000 per pound. It is used to make holistic medicine across much of East Asia.

The elephant deal between Zimbabwe and China was ruled legal by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), which released a statement saying, “the export would not be detrimental to the survival of the species in the wild.”

The elephants are said to be destined for Chimelong Safari Park in Guangdong Province of China, where wild animals often appear in circus-style performances. A travel story broadcast on CNN called the park “surreal, intriguing and disconcerting all at once.”