Pubs are planning to pump in artificial scents to mask the smell of stale beer, sweat and drains that used to be disguised by cigarettes before the smoking ban.

The aromas of ocean breezes and freshly cut grass are being tested by Mitchells & Butlers (M&B), which manages 2,000 pubs in Britain. The group is even considering a perfume that smells of tobacco smoke.

Supporters of the smoking ban insisted that pubs and bars would become sweeter smelling without cigarettes. But the smoke had masked the locker room aroma in some crowded venues on warm Friday and Saturday nights.

Oliver Devine, senior marketing manager at the Sizzling Pub Company, part of M&B, said: “Appetising food smells have increased but others are less attractive, such as stale food and beer, damp, sweat and body odour, drains and — how do you put this nicely? — flatulence.”

The chain has already tried out an “ozonic” fragrance that attempts to emulate the scent of a sea breeze at four suburban pubs in Edinburgh and Glasgow, where a smoking ban was introduced 12 months ago.

“We are considering trialling the smell of leather, which suggests luxury and indulgence, and cut grass, which is clean and domestic,” said Devine.

Jeff Mariola, president of Rentokil Initial’s ambience division, which is supplying Marriott hotels with bar perfumes, suggested that the aroma of malted hops could encourage beer drinking and mask the smell of drinks trodden into the floor.

Luminar Leisure, which owns 122 nightclubs across Britain, has already started pumping a scent over its dance floors.

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