A recent tragedy has brought attention to the importance of proper food labeling and the potentially fatal consequences of food allergies. Orla Baxendale, a 25-year-old professional dancer from New York City, died on Jan. 11 after suffering an allergic reaction to a cookie manufactured by Cookies United and sold by Stew Leonard’s, a popular Northeastern United States supermarket chain. The cookie contained peanuts, which were not noted on the packaging, leading to Orla’s death from anaphylactic shock.
According to a statement obtained from the New York City-based law firm of Gair, Gair, Conason, Rubinowitz, Bloom, Hershenhorn, Steigman & Mackauf, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and Stew Leonard’s. The company recently recalled the Vanilla Florentine Cookies sold at two locations in Connecticut, as those cookies contained peanuts not listed as part of the ingredients. Attorney Marijo C. Adimey with the firm described Orla’s death as “devastating and preventable,” attributing it to the “gross negligence and reckless conduct” of the manufacturer and sellers who failed to properly identify the contents of the cookie on the packaging.
Orla, who had moved to New York from East Lancashire, in the United Kingdom, to pursue her dream of becoming a world-class dancer, was known for her meticulousness when it came to checking the ingredients of the food she consumed. Even after suffering from an anaphylactic reaction to the cookie, she was unable to recover despite the use of an EpiPen, due to the severity of her allergy.
In response to the tragic event, Stew Leonard Jr., the president of Stew Leonard’s, acknowledged the supplier’s failure to disclose the change of recipe from soy nuts to peanuts, leading to the mislabeling of the product. He expressed regret for the lack of proper notification and vowed to take labeling more seriously, especially when it involves peanuts.
Meanwhile, an attorney for Cookies United defended the company, claiming that the mislabeling was a result of Stew Leonard’s incorrectly applying a label to the product purchased from Cookies United. The company asserts that it had notified Stew Leonard’s of the change in the product’s ingredients in July 2023 and that all products shipped to them were labeled accordingly, with Cookies United cooperating with regulatory authorities regarding the incident.
Orla Baxendale was remembered as a bright, talented, and vibrant individual with a passion for dance and a lasting impact on many lives. Her dedication and passion were evident in her work with various dance organizations, leaving a lasting legacy on the world of dance. The tragic loss of Orla serves as a sobering reminder of the importance of proper food labeling and the potentially fatal consequences of food allergies.
The story brings home the importance of proper food labeling and understanding the potentially fatal consequences of food allergies. The tragic death of Orla Baxendale serves as a stark reminder of the need for continued vigilance and transparency when it comes to food ingredients. The lack of proper labeling led to a devastating and preventable outcome, underscoring the need for companies to prioritize accurate ingredient disclosure to prevent similar tragedies in the future.
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