- Anna Bellisario went into anaphylactic shock at dinner in Italy in January 2023
- Giovanna Anoia and son Giuseppe Loiero negotiated the more lenient verdict
Makers of a ‘vegan‘ tiramisu dessert that killed a woman in Italy with a severe dairy allergy have been spared jail.
Anna Bellisario went into anaphylactic shock in January 2023 after eating just four spoonful’s of the dessert, which was found to contained traces of mascarpone cheese.
Mother and son defendants of the family run business GLG SRL, Giovanna Anoia and Giuseppe Loiero had been found guilty and sentenced to 12 months behind bars, however their defence lawyer has now negotiated a plea deal that will see them spared prison.
Instead the pair will pay a fine of 10,000 euros each plus compensation to Anna’s boyfriend and her family.
Anna Bellisario was allergic to dairy products and went into anaphylactic shock in January 2023 after eating just four spoonful’s of the dessert
Anna Bellisario. Giovanna Anoia and Giuseppe Loiero had been found guilty and sentenced to 12 months behind bars however their defence lawyer has now negotiated a plea deal that will see them spared prison
Judge Mariani in a court in Milan also revoked a ban on the pair going back into business that had been set by another judge at the request of prosecutors.
During their investigation, police unearthed ‘critical issues’ with food safety and production procedures at the company.
Vegan and non-vegan foods had been stored and prepared side by side with a high chance of cross-contamination, prosecutors said.
One of them even admitted that they had not considered allergy sufferers when creating vegan recipes.
The defence lawyer stated the duo going forward would pledge to stick closely to health and safety regulations.
Bellisario and her boyfriend had been dining at a fast food restaurant in Milan on January 26 last year.
When she ordered the tiramisu, Bellisario reportedly checked the label, but also asked for further information due to her very strong allergy.
She had then started to eat after being given reassurance, it was reported.
The maker of the tiramisu will pay a fine of 10,000 euros each plus compensation to Anna’s boyfriend and her family
Bellisario and her boyfriend had been dining at a fast food restaurant in Milan on January 26 last year
On the second spoonful, she felt sick and ran to the bathroom to try to vomit.
She took the asthma medication and the cortisone that she always carried, but shortly afterwards she lost consciousness and later died in hospital.
She passed away at San Raffaele hospital on February 5 after suffering a massive anaphylactic shock just minutes after eating the deadly dessert.
After her death, Italy’s Health Ministry withdrew several products marketed as vegan, and pulled a number of goods that had a ‘suspected presence of allergens not declared on the label’.
Many of them had reportedly been produced by the GLG company.
In other tiramisu packaging from the same brand, traces of milk protein were also identified.
On top of that, traces of egg were found in the mayonnaise of the supposedly vegan sandwich that Bellisario had as her main dish in the restaurant.