FSA Unveil Measures Aimed at Protecting People with Allergies Following the Inquest of Owen Carey

The Food Standards Agency (FSA) has unveiled a series of measures aimed at protecting people with food allergies and intolerances, following the conclusion of an inquest into the death of a teenager who suffered a fatal reaction to a Byron burger for his 18th birthday.

Owen Carey, who had a severe allergy to milk, died after eating a chicken burger marinated in buttermilk at a Byron at the O2 in Greenwich in 2017. An inquest heard that the ingredient was not listed on the “reassuring” menu and that Carey, who made staff aware of his allergies, was not informed about the presence of the ingredient.

Now the FSA have revealed a range of new measures on allergies which were discussed at a board meeting in Belfast yesterday, days after the inquest closed. The actions include:

• Issuing a “clear and easy-to-follow” aide-memoire for environmental health officers and trading standards officers which is focused specifically on the action they should be taking within business in relation to food allergies;

• Publishing an urgent update of the ‘Safer Food Better Business’ guide, including a review of the allergens information included;

• At the end of the year, launching an awareness campaign to remind businesses and consumers about how to keep people with food allergies safe;

• Implementing a pilot project to develop better reporting of allergic reactions;

• Focusing on the concerns raised by Carey’s case at the next Industry Leadership Forum on food hypersensitivity in November;

• Meeting with Byron and the local authorities to discuss the detail of Owen’s case and lessons learned;

• Commissioning a full root cause analysis of the Byron incident to ensure that lessons are shared.

The Anaphylaxis Campaign were in attendance at the inquest last week, to offer support to Owen’s family and understand the lessons that can be learnt from his tragic death. 

CEO Lynne Regent said: “ We’re very pleased to hear that the FSA are planning to take steps to learn lessons from this case and to help create a safer environment when eating out for food allergic individuals. We are also especially pleased to hear that an easy to follow guide for environmental health officers and trading standards officers focusing on action they should be taking within business in relation to food allergies will be issued and that a pilot to develop a better reporting system of allergic reactions will be implemented. We hope these measures will allow robust investigations to take place into each and every allergic reaction that happens.”

Read the full FSA announcement here – https://www.food.gov.uk/news-alerts/news/fsa-board-announces-plans-to-protect-people-with-food-allergies-and-intolerances