A FAMILY has demanded answers after staff at Morrisons supermarket proved little help when their toddler had a severe allergic reaction to potato wedges bought in store.

Andy Cookson and Jacqueline Barrett were shopping with their 16-month-old toddler Shane at Morrisons in Carterton when the allergy attack happened on Saturday afternoon.

The parents had walked with the youngster to the shops and on the way home gave him a bite of the potato wedges from the store’s hot deli counter.

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Almost instantly, Shane began swelling up and came out in hives all over his body seemingly in response to the potato snack.

Mr Cookson said: “We were walking down the road and we gave him one of the wedges – within ten minutes he started swelling up and we had to rush home where, luckily, we had Piriton (allergy relief).

“It doesn’t bear thinking about what would have happened if we didn’t.”

Oxford Mail:

The parents, who between them have six children at their Willow Drive home, said they went straight back to the shop once the youngster had been cared for, to ask staff for details of the potato wedge ingredients.

Mr Cookson said they were not aware of any allergies their toddler had and, due to the severe reaction, hoped to be able to trace what ingredients were in the wedges to discuss with the doctor.

However the family were left ‘in disbelief’ when nobody in store was able to tell them what ingredients were included.

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Mr Cookson said: “We went back to try to identify what ingredients had been used, nobody could give me any information at all.”

He added: “We were just in disbelief that nobody knew what is being used, all they did was give us a list of about six type of foods they cook in that fryer.”

Oxford Mail:

The dad said it was ‘ridiculous’ that nobody in store could help list the ingredients for the store-cooked food, especially given recent high-profile deaths in the media which have been caused by allergic reactions.

These include a teenager had a fatal reaction after unwittingly eating buttermilk at burger chain Byron in 2017, and another teenager who suffered a fatal reaction on board a plane to sesame seeds in a Pret A Manger baguette in 2016.

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Mr Cookson added: “It is important people can get allergy advice and to just make sure people are aware.”

Morrisons finally provided the family with a list of ingredients on Monday two hours after a call to head office.

The family were told via the 111 NHS non-emergency helpline to continue giving the youngster Piriton until they were able to take him to the doctors on the Monday.

They say Shane has since continued to suffer with hives and his dad says has gone off food, is very pale, and ‘not himself’.

The family are now waiting for an appointment with the John Radcliffe Hospital.

A Morrisons spokeswoman said: "We take food labelling incredibly seriously and are investigating with the store."