Family calls for better testing after mum’s fatal reaction to ‘vegan’ wrap
A family has called for tighter testing of foods sold to allergy sufferers after the inquest of a mum of five who died after eating a Pret wrap wrongly labelled as dairy free.
Celia Marsh, 42, suffered an allergic reaction to a vegan rainbow wrap, which contained yoghurt that was supposed to be dairy free, in a branch of Pret A Manger in Bath, Somerset.
Dental nurse Celia, of Melksham, Wiltshire, was out having a meal with her family in December 2017, when she suffered a fatal anaphylactic reaction.
The £3.75 snack contained a dairy-free yoghurt, which was later found to contain traces of milk protein.
The product was supplied by Planet Coconut, a firm set up by ‘mumprenaur’ Bethany Eaton. The former police officer bought the licence to market and distribute COYO in the UK from its Australian founder Henry Gosling – and built it into a multi-million-pound business.
But the inquest heard she admitted not carrying out any testing of the raw product, which was made in a UK Tate & Lyle factory after relying on ‘assurances’ from Mr Gosling it was dairy free.
The senior coroner Maria Voisin yesterday gave a narrative verdict conclusion and said lessons must be learnt to prevent future deaths.
She said: “A product marked dairy free had become cross-contaminated by milk.”
And speaking after the verdict, Celia’s husband Andy Marsh, 51, described his wife, who who he married in 2007, as his “best friend” and called for tighter testing to be established.
He said: “Any manufacturer who makes something that is then labelled ‘free from’ has to take the responsibility for the testing to make sure it is exactly that.
“I want to see testing at every stage of the process to make sure nothing gets through the cracks and to provide a safety net.
“People with allergies are currently relying solely on the fact that the packaging says it is ‘free from.’ Surely more testing along the way – even if it is more time consuming – would be better going forward.”
His comments were echoed by other family members.
Celia’s daughter Brenna Grice, 22, had gone to get lunch when she returned to find that her mum had collapsed.
She added: “We walked down this street and saw a massive crowd – it was a very distressing scene. Someone we knew came up to us and told us it was our mum on the floor.
“We could not believe that it was our mum. Even though she had allergies, I never believed this would happen to her.
“I would not wish what had happened to us on any other family.
“After the death of Natasha Ednan-laperouse you would think lessons would have been learned, and it would not happen again – but it has.”
Another daughter Kayleigh Grice, 20, was also shopping with her mum that day but had split to go for separate lunches.
She said: “I do often think that if we had maybe gone with her, then maybe she wouldn’t have eaten the sandwich and she would still be there now.
“But obviously Andy was with her, looking after her and checking on her anyway so you just can’t think like that. Labelling has to be better for people with allergies. There has to be clearer messages.
“Mum was so on it with labelling, she would triple check everything. If there was any hint that something may contain something she was allergic to, she wouldn’t touch it or even go anywhere near it. Change has to come to make sure no other family goes through what we went through. This should not happen ever again.”
Celia’s mum Jennifer Gower, 72, told how she had been an allergy sufferer from a child and was always vigilant about what she ate.
She added: “Shortly before she died, I remember saying ‘just to be safe, don’t buy sandwiches from small stores or corner shops, go to a more reputable high street chain as there will be less chance of cross contamination.’
“She said ‘Ok mum.’ She followed my advice when she bought that flatbread from Pret A Manger. Even though she did everything she could, Celia lost her life.
“The biggest message I want to come out of this is that every life matters. Better education about allergies and better support for allergy sufferers is needed so no one goes through what Celia did.”
Celia’s brother Gareth Gower also demanded more stringent labelling laws and legislation around anything that claims to be “free from”.
He added: “‘Free from’ should mean a guaranteed total absence
of that allergen from the food and not an interpretation by the manufacturer, with no requirement to test the product to ensure it has not been contaminated.
“Celia’s death could have been avoided had a regulated requirement of testing and a mandated safety standard been implemented to verify the ‘free from’ claim.
“We strongly believe ‘free from’ claims on products must be regulated and certified to prevent future tragedy.
“We would like to see the introduction of a ‘free from’ certification mark that can be earned and applied to products to demonstrate conformity to regular testing, auditing and controls and validate the conformity to a ‘free from’ claim.
“Allergy sufferers should not have to gamble with their lives every time they eat outside of the house or try a product that claims to be safe and free from allergies.
“Celia will be greatly missed by her family and friends; she loved to help others and would take some comfort in the cause of her death being used for the improvement of the lives of all food allergy sufferers and national allergy awareness.”
Speaking after the inquest, Pano Christou, CEO, Pret A Manger, said: “As a father and husband, I can only imagine how distressing this has been for Celia’s children and family. Our deepest sympathies remain with everyone who knew and loved Celia.
“We fully support the Coroner’s findings. As the Coroner made clear, Planet Coconut had information which should have alerted them that their Coyo yoghurt may have contained milk and this information was not passed on to Pret.
“It goes without saying that if Pret had ever known that the Coyo yoghurt may have contained milk, we would have never used the ingredient.
“On Pret’s part, we have taken significant steps forward with our suppliers and labelling policies since 2017. Through the Pret Allergy Plan, we made a clear commitment to lead the industry in developing new policies for people with food allergies.
“We will continue to do everything we can to help every customer get the information they need to make the right choice for them.”