After consuming a cookie that didn’t have nuts listed on the ingredient label, a British ballet dancer who had a severe allergy to peanuts passed away in the US.
The cookie was purchased earlier this month from a Stew Leonard’s grocery store in Connecticut by Órla Baxendale, a 25-year-old New Yorker.
The box made no mention of nuts, so she was unaware that the Vanilla Florentine Cookies included peanuts.
According to a statement released by her attorneys, Baxendale had an EpiPen with her, but it was insufficient to prevent the severe allergic reaction she experienced after eating the cookie. On January 11, anaphylactic shock claimed her life.
“Orla was extremely watchful and cautious about everything she ate, and she constantly verified the contents of every package. She also surrounded herself with people who knew how to administer an EpiPen and carried one with her at all times, the lawyer added.
“An EpiPen was used after she started having an anaphylactic reaction, but it was ineffective because of how severe her allergy was,” he continued.
Since then, the supermarket shop has recalled the Vanilla Florentine Cookie batch. According to the recall notice, Cookies United made the cookies, which were only available at Stew Leonard’s locations in Danbury and Newington.
The cookies have eggs and peanuts that aren’t disclosed. If they ingest these items, people who are allergic to peanuts or eggs or who are extremely sensitive to them run the risk of suffering a severe or fatal allergic response. The mislabeled product may have been linked to one death, according to reports, according to Meghan Bell, director of public relations at Stew Leonard.
According to a statement from Cookies United, the business informed Stew Leonard’s in July that the product now contains peanuts.
“It’s a sad day for us,” the store owner stated in a video message. We’re all really upset and devastated,” he remarked.
“Out of my four daughters, one is in her 20s.” We are all quite depressed over the entire situation, and I can only imagine how that family is feeling at the moment.
For a response, The Independent has reached out to Stew Leonard’s.
East Lancashire native Baxendale relocated to New York City to further her career as a dancer.
Her web obituary describes her as “an exquisite ballet, contemporary, and Irish step dancer” who was the “embodiment of enthusiasm, strength, and beauty.”
Her family remarked that they were “devastated by this unimaginable loss.”
Ms. Baxendale’s passing was described as “a heartbreaking tragedy” by Bryan Cafferelli, commissioner of the Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection.
He stated that in an attempt to “avoid a similar tragedy from occurring in the future,” his state agency was collaborating with federal, local, and state authorities.
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