Mia Shay St Hilaire was visiting a cafe in London with her aunt and sister when she ordered the Twix milkshake that would cost her her life.
The 12-year-old should not have been allergic to the drink. But after having it, she “developed rapidly progressing anaphylaxis,” a reaction that affects multiple body systems at once, the coroner’s report determined.
She “then collapsed at her aunt’s house.” The child received emergency treatment and was transferred to the intensive care unit at Evelina London Children’s Hospital where she died, the coroner’s office said Thursday.
St Hilaire suffered from a life-threatening nut allergy. But Pop Inn cafe owner Baris Yucel had just used the same blender to make a Kinder Bueno hazelnut milkshake — and didn’t wash it before preparing St. Hilaire’s order.
The Independent reports that CCTV captured Yucel making St. Hilaire’s milkshake without cleaning the blender first.
“No family should have to lose a child under these circumstances,” the girl’s parents said in a statement. “Had local authorities ensured that the café’s allergy management responsibilities had been properly understood and put into practice, we believe Mia would still be alive today.”
“We want to ensure change is Mia’s legacy so we can help save lives in the future…Mia was and is deeply loved and she will never be forgotten.”
After St Hilaire’s death in August 2023, the cafe was fined £18,000 (around $24,000).
Yucel admitted to six violations of the Food Safety Act, including failing to make allergen advice available or visible to customers, failing to manage contamination during food production, and serving food containing an allergen ingredient that was not supposed to be present.
He was ordered to perform 100 hours of community service and no longer owns or operates the cafe.
“The judge accepted that Mr Yucel had shown genuine remorse,” Yucel’s lawyer told Southwark News. “He took immediate steps to better educate himself in September and October 2023 and pleaded guilty at the first opportunity.”
“Mr. Yucel has had to live with the consequences of what happened and not a day goes by that he doesn’t think of the child and his family.”
Improving the safety of people with food allergies
One in 13 children in the United States has a food allergy, and 42% of them have had a serious reaction to a food.
Each year in the United States, 3.4 million patients (the population of Oklahoma) go to the emergency room because of a food allergy, according to Food Allergy Research and Education.
Deaths from food allergies are extremely rare, thanks to life-saving interventions like epinephrine, administered through devices like the EpiPen. In the United States, anaphylaxis kills 225 people a year, although most are caused by drug allergies.
In the United States, safety regulations regarding food allergies vary by state and city. The UK has more standardized regulations, requiring all food companies to declare all regulated allergens, including nuts, as ingredients.
However, this was not enough to save St Hilaire’s life. His parents insist that more be done.
“We are convinced that significant changes are necessary to protect people with food allergies,” say the parents of St Hilaire.
“Consumers rely on food hygiene ratings to decide where it is safe to eat, but they tell us nothing about how a food company manages its allergy management systems… There should be a separate, clearly displayed rating dedicated to allergy management, like the Food Hygiene Rating.” »
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