Girl, 11, ‘needed dialysis after eating Asda sandwich’

Parents of an 11-year-old girl who had to be put on dialysis after contracting E. coli from a supermarket sandwich have said they “want answers”.

The girl, from Merseyside, was in hospital for three weeks with haemolytic uraemic syndrome (HUS), which attacks the kidneys, after eating an own-brand sandwich from Asda supermarket, legal firm Fieldfisher said.

Fieldfisher said the girl, who was now at home, faced “invasive treatment” and the family were demanding answers in a letter to Asda over an alleged breach of the Consumer Protection Act 1987.

An Asda spokesman said it had not yet received any letter but added: “As soon as we do we will review the details of the claim as a matter of urgency.”

Claire Glasgow, director at Fieldfisher, told BBC Radio Merseyside: “I’ve seen some comments about this being a sickness bug but the symptoms of the illness itself are very unpleasant and the potential and more serious consequences, like kidney failure or dialysis, is not a small thing for someone to go through.”

One person in England has died linked to the ongoing E. coli outbreak, the UK Health Security Agency said on Thursday, although they had underlying health conditions.

The E. coli outbreak is thought to be caused by some supermarket sandwiches containing salad leaves.

Several food manufacturers recalled some of their products as a precaution.

Ms Glasgow said: “It is common to see this bacteria at petting farms or zoos because it comes from animals, mainly cattle and sheep.

“In this case it is quite unusual because the sandwiches have national distribution… cases are popping up all over the place.”

The family were hoping the claim would find out what happened and what their child’s future of health might hold, solicitors said.

“If a supermarket is selling a product which is marketed under their own brand they do have responsibility for that but no doubt they have contracts with their suppliers and manufacturers.

“They will be looking to see where the source of this is, I’m sure they will be as keen as anybody to find that out and to try and make sure something like this doesn’t happen again,” added Ms Glasgow.