The NHS been urged to stop serving patients processed meats linked to cancer risks as it is claimed nearly nine out of 10 hospitals still have these items on the menu. Campaigners want the health service to ditch food which has been nitrite-cured to preserve the meat and keep it pink.

A survey of NHS trusts using the Freedom of Information Act found 86% of those who responded were still serving the meats. Professor Chris Elliott, who founded the Institute for Global Food Security at Queen’s University, Belfast, and led the independent investigation into the 2013 horse meat scandal, has backed the Coalition Against Nitrites.

He said: “The irony of these findings will not be lost on anyone. The NHS should be at the forefront of delivering safer diets.

“We all realise the immense pressures on the health system but surely our hospitals must be seen to be taking the lead in providing healthy, nourishing food for patients. Sadly, the data show this is far from the case.

“In the UK and across the world, colon cancer rates are rising, especially among young people. Banning nitrites from processed meats would be a very important step in stemming this extremely worrying trend and will set an example for other organisations to follow.”

According to Cancer Research UK, an estimated 13 out of every 100 bowel cancers are linked to eating processed meats.

Research for the campaign by pollsters JL Partners found there was 67% net approval for a ban on nitrite-cured meals in hospitals.

A decade ago, the World Health Organisation reported findings that “about 34 000 cancer deaths per year worldwide are attributable to diets high in processed meat”

Next month the level of nitrites which can be used in food processing is due to be cut in the European Union.

However, the Food Standards Agency (FSA) claims that there is no clear evidence that nitrite-free processed meats are a safer alternative.

James Cooper, deputy director of Food Policy at the FSA said: “The Government recommends limited consumption of red and processed meat to no more that 70g per day for adults. Nitrates in our food remain important preservatives to ensure the safety of cured meats and also come from natural sources such as leafy greens.

“As additives they have been rigorously assessed for their safety and evidence is continually reviewed.”