Milkshake made in a dirty blender containing traces of nuts led to the tragic death of 12-year-old schoolgirl Mia-Shay St Hilaire, who suffered severe allergic reaction.
Her devastated parents say the tragedy could have been easily avoided had the London café followed safety regulations. This only added to their heartbreak.
As per BBC, Mia-Shay, who was allergic to tree nuts, visited the Pop Inn Café on Southwark Park Road, South-East London, and ordered milkshake. However, they prepared her order in the same blender they had previously made a drink containing almonds and hazelnuts.
Mia-Shay was rushed to the hospital where she sadly passed away.
The incident took place on August 30, 2023.
Southwark Council’s food safety team launched an investigation in order to determine the circumstances preceding Mia-Shay’s fatal allergic reaction. They concluded that the blender used wasn’t washed before making Mia’s milkshake. As a result, traces of the nuts remained in it and ended in Mia’s drink.
CCTV footage from the café showed the worker, Baris Yucel, 47, failing to clean the blender.
The failure to follow the safety regulations directly contributed to the severe allergic reaction and the young girl’s passing.
On December 2024, Yucel admitted six criminal charges relating to the young girl’s tragic passing. Some included failure to provide allergen information for customers, failure to prevent cross-contamination during food preparation and serving food containing an undisclosed allergen.
Croydon Magistrates’ Court fined him £18,000 and gave him a 100-hour community order.
Mia-Shay’s parents said, “We think of Mia every day and knowing her death could potentially have been prevented so simply, only adds to how heartbroken we are as a family.
“We hope this conviction and fine sends a loud message to businesses serving food and drinks across the country, of the devastating consequences of failing to take food safety seriously.”
Yucel’s lawyer said “a day does not go by when he does not think about the child and her family.”
We are so very sorry for this devastating loss.
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