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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

More of a WWYD than AIBU chicken in a vegan sandwich.

279 replies

6demandingchildren · 26/02/2022 16:50

My lovely step mum is moving and the family have got together to move her today, my dad went to a local bakery to get everyone lunch, my husband is the only vegetarian and my dad got him a chickpea coronation sandwich after double checking with the assistant my dad spent over £50 in there, after a few mouthfuls my husband came across a large chunk of chicken looked in the sandwich and there was small bits of chicken in it, I contacted them through Facebook messenger they have read my message that says

My father came to you early this afternoon and bought lots of food for the family, the coronation chickpea sandwich however contained chicken after the vegetarian who was eating it found out it also contained no chickpeas.
We still have half left with the packaging, how would you like to move forward with this issue?
Regards

But obviously won't get a reply now until Monday at the earliest.
What else can I do?

OP posts:
Thread gallery
5
fairylightsandwaxmelts · 26/02/2022 19:14

@Oblomov22

What are you expecting here? Apology? Refund? What? Yes it's not good. You can't order a vegan sandwich and think it's ok to be given chicken. But what outcome exactly are you gunning for here?
They should count their lucky stars that their mistake didn't land someone in hospital or even kill them.

They're also very lucky OP didn't report them to Trading Standards for breaking Natasha's Law. They could be fined a lot of money.

They should be doing all they possibly can to apologise and ensure this doesn't happen again in the future and yes, the LEAST they can do is apolgise and offer a refund.

fairylightsandwaxmelts · 26/02/2022 19:17

@PyongyangKipperbang

How are people still not getting......people can die from mistakes like this!

A momentary mistake in the kitchen can cost someone their life, which is why I and the tens of thousands of others who have worked in hospitality have to take and renew our food hygience, food safety and allergen training. Its also why I personally know of a few people who simply never eat out because the risk of a fuck up isnt a risk they can afford to take.

Exactly. I think if you've worked with food (or have allergies yourself), you're much more aware of the potential consequences.

I used to work on the hot food counter in a supermarket, and I worked with someone who made a similar mistake - he cooked a chicken and put the incorrect label on it (so a seasoned chicken was labelled as plain).

The customer was allergic to the season and (quite rightly) complained. As all the cooking information is recorded by law, the company knew who had done it and the person in question got fired.

WonderfulYou · 26/02/2022 19:17

This is very bad!
I’m not vegan, vegetarian or have allergies but I’d be disgusted with them - not so much from my POV but knowing that if this mistake has happened to you it’s bound to have happened to other people, which could have much more serious consequences.

Definitely take photos and save it so they can see the chicken.
You’ll have to ring on Monday and speak to someone in charge.

C8H10N4O2 · 26/02/2022 19:20

So 40% of posters think its fine to order and pay for food and check it does not contain certain ingredients and then find those ingredients in the food half way through eating? So a few nuts in something labelled nut free, bacon in a kosher or halal sandwich are all fine?

Coronation chickpea sandwiches are a pretty commonplace vegan/veggie option. Try googling before assuming otherwise. Even if it were unique to that bakery customers should be able to assume food is packaged and labelled correctly, especially when checking with the staff.

xxxsuper · 26/02/2022 19:21

The wording of your message is awful. I would have clearly told them the sandwich had chicken in it and that I just wanted to feed it back to them (sorry!) to ensure it wouldn't happen again.

This is jumbled up nonsense...

My father came to you early this afternoon and bought lots of food for the family, the coronation chickpea sandwich however contained chicken after the vegetarian who was eating it found out it also contained no chickpeas.

I would have said something like...

'Hi, just found some chicken in one of your chickpea sandwiches. Not sure if it's a labelling issue but just wanted to let you know so you can check. Thanks.

Somebodylikeyew · 26/02/2022 19:22

There are some right dickheads on here today.

OP, this should never have been able to happen and I hope your husband feels ok, I know this would really affect many vegetarians. I think it’s really disappointing they’ve read your messages and not responded rightaway but I don’t think there’s much else you can do until they do.

PyongyangKipperbang · 26/02/2022 19:24

I wonder if the lack of a response was because they were running around like headless chickens (sorry....!) removing all of their sandwiches from sale and wondering who the hell else had got a vegan sandwich containing dairy and meat......

I just hope that the person who will probably lose their job over this isnt some poor kid on their saturday job who wasnt properly trained.....seen that too.

Kennykenkencat · 26/02/2022 19:26

@BritWifeInUSA

What would you like them to do? The sandwich can’t be uneaten. They can’t rewind time. About all they can do is refund the cost of the sandwich. What are you keeping the rest for? Eat it or bin it - it’s a sandwich that possibly had chicken in (could it have maybe been Quorn pieces?), not evidence of a crime.

Stop being so dramatic over a sandwich and either a misunderstanding or a human error. No one died.

But people have died because of this type of error.
fairylightsandwaxmelts · 26/02/2022 19:27

So 40% of posters think its fine to order and pay for food and check it does not contain certain ingredients and then find those ingredients in the food half way through eating? So a few nuts in something labelled nut free, bacon in a kosher or halal sandwich are all fine?

Apparently it doesn't matter Hmm

It's "just mistake"
It's "one of those things"

Would they say that if they'd ordered an egg-free, vegan sandwich for their allergic child and it killed them?

WonderfulYou · 26/02/2022 19:29

What would you like them to do?

Ermm make them aware of their mistake and make sure it doesn’t ever happen again.

PyongyangKipperbang · 26/02/2022 19:34

@fairylightsandwaxmelts

Very good point.

If their child had life threatening allergies then there would probably an MN wide boycott and suggestions of fire bombing the outlet. But because it is a grown man who happens to be vegetarian, its "just one of those things". The fact that the next customer may well have been a child with life threatening allergies seems to have passed them by.....

curlymom · 26/02/2022 19:40

I know this isn’t an allergy issue but places do need to get it right particularly for people with allergies. Put it in the fridge go in Monday and ask for an explanation. They will refund and give you a danish probably and you will feel better,

SpinningTheSeedsOfLove · 26/02/2022 19:42

I think it's possible that the OP had an upset and disappointed husband on her hands (she herself says 'hangry'), a dad who was 'confused' and pissed off that no good deed (buying a £50 lunch) goes unpunished, and that the family dynamic is that she felt she should try to sort it all out in the midst of a stressful moving day.

None of this is her fault.

Does anyone remember the Jamie Oliver restaurant case? A young woman potentially missed out on a heart and lung tranplant over a cock-up with gluten. The place was fined pretty heavily after the city council brought a successful prosecution. As previous posters have said, the law's even stricter now.

www.huffpost.com/entry/jamies-italian-celiac-kristy-richardson-fine_n_3286189

RedRobyn2021 · 26/02/2022 19:44

All the people telling her to forget about it or sarcastically "what are you expecting"

You're idiots

If someone with an allergy had eaten that it could make them very poorly

Sorry OP I have no idea what to suggest but I wouldn't just leave it tbh, if you don't get a reply by Monday I would contact them again. The very Ba least they can do is apologise, hell it's not a lot to ask

FluffyBooBoo · 26/02/2022 19:44

If it says chickenpea, rather than chickpea could it be chicken style pea protein?

I'm slightly gobsmacked by the number of people that haven't realised that vegan alternatives to, for example, mayo, exist.

Honeyroar · 26/02/2022 19:46

I’m a vegetarian and I’d be pretty hacked off to find chicken in my sandwich.

And some of the replies on here are so snotty they make themselves look like idiots. I own a café. I could get into serious trouble for wrongly labelling products. There were new laws came in last autumn about labelling things properly for allergies. Every food product pre packaged has to have an accurate label and all staff handling food should have allergen training and be able to discuss the products with customers. I’d be mortified if I’d had this happen in my café. I’d apologise, refund and check my methods as to how this could have happened.

And as for why the vegan Mayo - sometimes it’s easier to just use one product for all, that meets all dietary requirements.

FireMeetGasoline · 26/02/2022 19:51

As a vegan I would be so upset if I accidentally ate meat. However, I am also aware that people make mistakes. This could be theirs or your father's mistake. Not saying this is the case, but it's amazing how many people actually ask me if I eat chicken/fish. Coronation chickpea/chicken - very easy to mishear/say the wrong thing.

I would certainly tell them, and just accept the apology/refund. You are right though that food businesses should be extra careful. If not for ethical reasons, people do have allergies and do die from them.

SD1978 · 26/02/2022 19:53

Nothing. You'll get a refund and an apology. You seem to be slightly dramatic about it. It sucks that your husband has had meat, and that it's against his beliefs, but you seem to be overdramatising.

PyongyangKipperbang · 26/02/2022 20:01

These stupid "meaty but not meat" sounding names really dont help. Chickenpea instead of Chickpea could easily be misread by someone in a rush.

I had a customer at work once buy what she thought was a pre prepped chicken roast thing, when it was actually labelled "No chicken chicken". WTF?!

I know that they are done to promote veggie/vegan eating to meat eaters but ime all it does is confuse matters.

MasterBeth · 26/02/2022 20:15

@PyongyangKipperbang

How are people still not getting......people can die from mistakes like this!

A momentary mistake in the kitchen can cost someone their life, which is why I and the tens of thousands of others who have worked in hospitality have to take and renew our food hygience, food safety and allergen training. Its also why I personally know of a few people who simply never eat out because the risk of a fuck up isnt a risk they can afford to take.

So what do you want to happen, considering someone could have died, but, actually… No-one died?

The OP could pass on her concerns to Trading Standards, but her husband’s own circumstances have not been hugely affected. It’s unfortunate that he’s inadvertently eaten vegan food. He may be disgusted by it. But reasonable compensation is an apology, a refund and some vouchers (£5, £10?).

willnotbemoved · 26/02/2022 20:24

As a vegan who doesn't like to have to tell everybody about it (contrary to stereotype) I'd be somewhat pissed off that someone had made this sort of mistake and given me the wrong sandwicg. However as wicked stepmother to DSD who has multiple, some potentially life-threatening food allergies I know that this kind of mistake has potentially very serious consequences. This is not OK.

PriamFarrl · 26/02/2022 20:24

So if the person in question was Jewish and they thought they’d ordered a veggie bacon sandwich everyone would be fine with that too?

I’d be in touch with the bakery to make sure they don’t have a mistake that causes real problems.

And how is everyone seeing that it says chicken on the label? I’m not seeing chicken.

EeeICouldRipATissue · 26/02/2022 20:25

And how is everyone seeing that it says chicken on the label? I’m not seeing chicken
Exactly, I see chickpea before chicken!

liveforsummer · 26/02/2022 20:29

@EeeICouldRipATissue

And how is everyone seeing that it says chicken on the label? I’m not seeing chicken Exactly, I see chickpea before chicken!
The name of the sandwich was chickenpea. I think that picture has been deleted now though
xxxsuper · 26/02/2022 20:30

The name of the sandwich was chickenpea. I think that picture has been deleted now though

So it was never a vegetarian sandwich?