A 12-year-old girl tragically passed away after consuming a milkshake prepared in an uncleaned blender at a café in south-east London.
Mia St Hilaire, who had a tree nut allergy, suffered a serious allergic reaction when her drink was suspected to contain remnants of hazelnuts and almonds from a previously made milkshake in the same blender at the Pop Inn Café on Southwark Park Road.
She was rushed to a hospital, where she unfortunately died in August 2023.
As a result of the incident, the café has been penalized with an £18,000 fine, and its owner has been sentenced to 100 hours of community service after pleading guilty to six offenses under the Food Safety Act.
The food safety team from Southwark Council presented evidence, including CCTV footage, showing that the café’s manager, Baris Yucel, failed to clean the blender prior to preparing Mia’s drink, leaving hazardous residues from an earlier milkshake.
Southwark Council contended that this negligence led to Mia’s severe allergic reaction, suggesting that her death could have been averted.
Mia’s parents, Adrian and Chanel St Hilaire, expressed their ongoing grief, stating they “think of Mia every day” and that “the knowledge that her death could have been so easily prevented makes our heartbreak as a family even greater.”
An inquiry into Mia’s death is scheduled to occur at a future date.
