Montreal

Brazil and Canada moved quickly this week to patch up a row over a Canadian threat to ban Brazilian beef because of fears of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE).

Canada had announced that it would ban imports of Brazilian beef on scientific grounds. But after a barrage of criticism from both countries, the government indicated that the ban was likely to be lifted as suddenly as it had been imposed.

The threat to ban the beef caused uproar in Brazil, and came under fire in Canada after two scientists in the federal health department said publicly that it had no scientific basis and was motivated by politics rather than health concerns.

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency says that the ban was imposed because Brazil failed to supply adequate documentation on cattle it had recently imported from Europe. But critics say the real reason was a long-running trade dispute between the two countries over aircraft manufacturing subsidies.

The World Trade Organization has ruled that Brazilian subsidies to Embraer, a direct competitor of Canada's Bombardier in the lucrative market for small passenger-jets, are illegal, and that Canada can impose retaliatory trade sanctions. But it has been reluctant to do this, as it regards Brazil as an important regional ally.

In Brazil, where no cases of BSE have been reported, the beef ban was branded a dirty trick in the press.

The mild-mannered Brazilian president, Fernando Henrique Cardoso, warned of a possible trade war with Canada, and the ban sparked public protests and led to Canadian whisky being dumped in the streets of São Paulo.