Milanese woman, 20, dies after eating 'vegan tiramisu'

 ROME -- Magistrates at the Milan Prosecutor’s office were investigating Tuesday the death of a 20-year-old Italian woman who went into anaphylactic shock after consuming a vegan tiramisu at a Milanese restaurant, judicial sources said 

 The ‘vegan’ tiramisu has since been recalled from over 63 shops around Italy, due to the presence of milk protein within the product, which was not indicated on the label, and possible traces of eggs as a decision by the Ministry of Health. The Milan’s prosecutor's office is investigating whether the death of the young girl is the responsibility of one of four subjects: The owner of ‘Tiramisun’, the production manager, or two employees of the company, based in the Milan area, which produced that 'Vegan Tiramisun'. Two criminal charges have been filed including fraud in the exercise of trade and sale of non-genuine foodstuffs and manslaughter, however, all charges have been contested.

 The young woman died this weekend after a 10-day coma at the St Raffaele Hospital in Milan. On the evening of Jan. 26, she, together with her boyfriend, went to dinner at a vegan restaurant that specializes in vegan burgers in the Corso Garibaldi area, where she ordered the vegan tiramisu, evidently believing the dessert would not contain any traces of dairy, much less milk as was written on the menu and the label of the dessert. After the first few bites, the girl immediately started getting sick and went into anaphylactic shock, which induced a coma, and ultimately led to her death.

 After the girl’s reaction, the product was instantly recalled and from the first checks, it was established that the dessert did contain traces of dairy and milk. One theory being investigated is that contamination may have occurred, hence the presence of "milk proteins" that should not have been there. 

 Subsequent investigations by the ATS (the health protection agency), have revealed that the burger she had also eaten at the restaurant had traces of egg in the mayonnaise, which may also be connected to her death. The investigation is ongoing, and an autopsy will be carried out between Thursday and next Friday to reveal whether it was the traces of milk or egg, or both which caused her death.

 Either way, it has been established that both the restaurant and Tiramisun failed to indicate the allergens present in their food, an irresponsible error that evidently cost a young woman her life.

 jp-sz

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