A 25-year-old professional dancer from the UK is dead after eating mislabeled cookies that she purchased from a store in Connecticut. Órla Baxendale's family says she had a severe nut allergy and died of anaphylactic shock on January 11, 2024, due to an allergic reaction.
The purchased cookies did not list nuts as an ingredient on the packaging label. Órla had moved to New York City from East Lancashire, England, to pursue her career in dancing, according to a statement that was released by her family's lawyers.
The dancer's family is "devastated by this unimaginable loss," according to the statement. "She was a radiant and brave soul who pursued her dreams relentlessly, leaving an indelible mark on the hearts of those who knew her," they said.
Órla bought the cookies from Stew Leonard's, a local grocery retailer that sold the Vanilla Florentine cookies. The store has since issued a recall of the 500 packs of cookies in partnership with the Food and Drug Administration. The company said the seasonal items were sold at two of its three stores in Connecticut — in Danbury and Newington — from November 6 through December 31, 2023. Their best by date was January 5, 2024.
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Consumers who have to return the products will receive their money back. "Customers with nut allergies should bring back the product to customer service for a full refund," the recall said.
One of the family's attorneys, Marijo C. Adime, released another statement stating that the dancer had an EpiPen, but her allergy was too severe. “Órla was very careful and hyper-vigilant about everything she ate, and always thoroughly checked the ingredients on all packaging. In addition, she always carried an EpiPen with her and surrounded herself with people who know how to administer one."
“After she began to have an anaphylactic reaction, an EpiPen was used but due to the severity of her allergy, it was not effective,” he added. The store owner released a video statement expressing his condolences. "It's a sad day for us. We're just all devastated, very sad. I have four daughters, one of them is in their 20s. I can imagine how that family feels right now, and we're all just very, very sad about this whole thing."
The cookies were manufactured by its wholesaler, Cookies United, out of Islip, New York, and repackaged by Stew Leonard's. "The supplier changed the recipe and started going from soy nuts to peanuts and our chief safety officer at Stew Leonard's was never notified," Leonard Jr. said.
However, Cookies United says the store was notified. "Stew Leonard's was notified by Cookies United in July of 2023 that this product now contains peanuts and all products shipped to them have been labeled accordingly," they claimed in a statement. "This product is sold under the Stew Leonard's brand and repackaged at their facilities. The incorrect label was created by, and applied to, their product by Stew Leonard's."
"In the 24 hours since Cookies United learned of this tragedy we have been cooperating with the New York State Department of Agriculture and have been informed we are in compliance with all applicable rules and regulations relating to this product," the company said. "Both companies need to take accountability," someone commented. "This young woman should still be alive and living out her dreams. They need to pay for the outcome of their gross negligence."
