BEFORE you get stuck into that breakfast fry-up be warned. The World Health Organisation is poised to declare that bacon, sausages and other processed meat cause cancer.

Processed meat is also expected to be included in the same category as cigarettes, alcohol and asbestos, theIndependent reported.

Red meat is also expected to be included in a list of food stuffs that are “probably carcinogenic to humans”.

Meat industry groups warned that the new listing could be disastrous for sales, the paper said.

Betsy Booren, of the North American Meat Institute, said: “If they determine that red and processed meat causes cancer — and I think they will — that moniker will stick … It could take decades and billions of dollars to change that.”

According to the World Cancer Research Fund, there is strong evidence that eating red and processed meat increases risk of bowel cancer.

The British National Health Service repeated the claim on its website, NHS Choices.

“People who eat a lot of these meats are at higher risk of bowel cancer than those who eat small amounts,” it said.

However, the site also acknowledged the benefits of meats like beef, lamb and pork which it says “can form part of a healthy diet”.