Brazilian beef was headed back to the shelves of Carrefour-owned grocery stores Tuesday after a brief boycott sparked by remarks from the French company’s chief executive about nations in the South America trade bloc Mercosur.

Europe's largest food retailer Carrefour said on Tuesday it regretted that a pledge to keep South American meat off its shelves in France was perceived as "putting in doubt its partnership with Brazilian agriculture".

Brazil's agriculture minister on Monday threw his support behind national meat suppliers that have halted deliveries to Carrefour supermarkets in a growing row related to Mercosur trade negotiations.Brazilian media are calling the disrupted meat deliveries to Carrefour supermarkets a "boycott" and many Brazilians online have applauded it.