The family of a ‘beautiful’ ballet dancer who died from an allergic reaction sues the ‘callous’ supermarket over a cookie sale.

After a Lancashire ballet dancer passed away after an allergic reaction to a cookie, her grieving family is suing a US supermarket, alleging “gross negligence.”

After eating vanilla Florentine cookies that contained peanuts, Órla Baxendale, a professional dancer working in New York but originating from Helmshore in Rosendale, had anaphylactic shock and died on January 11.

After being bought at the Connecticut Stew Leonard’s store, the biscuits were later recalled because the label did not include a notice about peanut allergies.

The 25-year-old, who suffered from a severe allergy to peanuts, fell ill after consuming the biscuits made by US baking company Cookies United.

The bereaved family of Ñrla, who was described as “truly one of a kind” and a “beautiful, radiant, and brave soul,” filed a complaint last week in Waterbury Superior Court, claiming that the maker and the store were both “grossly negligent,” according to The Mirror.

According to the claim, Órla was in her “prime of her life,” the cookies included “undeclared peanuts,” and she had “relied upon the manufacturer and seller to properly label the package sold to the general public.”

Additionally, it claims that in July 2023, six months before Ms. Baxendale had the peanuts, 11 Stew Leonard’s employees received an email informing them of a change in ingredients.

The company is thought to have shipped bulk packing indicating the presence of peanuts in October of last year. Órla’s family is represented by the personal injury law firm Gair, Gair, Conason, Rubinowitz, Bloom, Hershenhorn, Steigman and Mackauf in the case.

According to the legal team, Órla passed away “due to the heinous negligence and reckless disregard for the rights of others.”

The action claims that the seller and manufacturer were legally obligated to reveal the ingredients on the cookie package, therefore their failure to do so “was grossly negligent, intentional, reckless, callous, indifferent to human life, and a wanton violation” before the sale.

The family’s legal team stated that although an EpiPen is thought to have been given after Ñrla experienced anaphylactic shock, its effectiveness was attributed to the extreme severity of the allergy. A Stew Leonard’s representative stated that they were unable to comment on ongoing legal matters.

In January, Stew Leonard’s reported that the supplier had switched the recipe’s soy nuts to peanuts without informing their head of safety.

According to Cookies United, they informed Stew Leonard’s in July of the product’s peanut content and ensured that all items supplied to the merchant were appropriately labeled. Unspecified monetary and punitive damages are sought in the complaint.