Brazilians are kicking up a stink over 1,200 tonnes of British garbage, including toilet seats, dirty diapers and used syringes, that are rotting at two southern ports after arriving in container ships.

The trash, which arrived in Brazil earlier this year, was destined for Brazilian companies that said they were expecting shipments of recyclable plastic, officials say.

Instead, port officials found the containers that originated at the British port of Felixstowe packed with trash ranging from the chemical toilet seats to food remnants and computer pieces.

Brazil's federal prosecution office asked the foreign ministry on to request that Britain take back the shipments.

"We will ask for the repatriation of this garbage," said the Brazilian environment agency IBAMA president Roberto Messias.

"Clearly, Brazil is not a big rubbish dump of the world."

IBAMA has imposed fines on the import companies involved in the shipments and Mr Messias said it was "difficult to believe" they were innocent of any wrongdoing.

The British Embassy said in a statement it was investigating the case and would "not hesitate to act" if it was found that a company had violated the Basel Convention on the movement of hazardous waste.

Both countries are signatories of the treaty, which came into force in 1992.

- Reuters