Texas college student Alison Pickering was just days away from graduation when she suffered anaphylaxis to a restaurant meal. The 23-year-old did not survive the reaction, which quickly turned severe.
Alison had been on a first date, at a restaurant she knew, according to her parents, Joy and Grover Pickering.
The Pickerings were initially quiet about their daughter’s food allergy death in May 2023. But recently, they sat down with CBS News in Texas to tell her story. They are now making it their mission to raise food allergy awareness in restaurants, including consistent allergy communication and training.
On the night of her date, Alison chose the restaurant, and ordered a fish dish – Mahi-Mahi. It had been safe for her in past.
Her parents say that what both she and the servers didn’t know, is that the recipe had changed. It now used a peanut sauce, and she had a peanut allergy.
Her dad says that after a few bites, his daughter “realized something was wrong.” He says she used her epinephrine auto-injector and 911 was called. “She actually walked to the ambulance, talking to them,” relates Grover Pickering. “But somewhere along the way, things went downhill.” She lost consciousness and, as the interviewer notes, “never woke up.”
Alison, who was about to graduate from Tarleton State University, west of Fort Worth, had had a few reactions over the years. “She would feel it in her lips and her throat, and we would take trips to the ER,” her father told the CBS interviewer. Her mother said, however, that her daughter was careful about her allergy.
After Alison: Mission for Restaurant Change
Alison’s father said one of his daughter’s approaches to allergy safety was to “repeatedly go to the same restaurants and order the same dishes.”
“It’s tragic. It doesn’t need to happen to anyone else,” said Joy Pickering. The couple plans to work with the Texas Restaurant Association “to determine what guidelines can be put in place to help restaurants have better communication with their customers as far as ingredients,” says Grover.
“I know we’re going to save lives by doing this,” Joy told CBS.
Further to their mission is the work of Belinda Vaca, who lobbied for years for the Sergio Lopez Awareness Act. The act, which passed in June 2023 – shortly after Alison’s death – is named for Vaca’s son. Sergio Lopez, who also had a severe peanut allergy, died from eating a taco, despite being assured twice by restaurant staff that the dish didn’t have peanut.
On Sept. 1, 2024, the Lopez Act took effect. It requires Texas restaurants to display food allergy posters in their kitchens. They must include information food allergy risks, symptoms, procedures to prevent allergen exposures, and how to respond to allergic reactions.
What’s also of interest is the Food and Drug Administration’s 2022 Food Code. This most recent version provides great strides for restaurant allergen labeling, requiring that consumers are notified in writing of Top 9 allergen ingredients in “unpackaged” foods.
While that’s hopeful, as Allergic Living has previously reported, the code must be adopted at the state level. The fact is, there are usually years between the time that the FDA issues an updated Food Code and its adoption by a state.
In Texas, they are still working with 2017 Food Code. Food allergy advocates can, however, become aware of their state’s code version and lobby to update it.
Condolences and Prevention
At Allergic Living, we know our followers join us in sending condolences to the Pickerings, who are grieving the loss of their beloved daughter.
I know it’s always difficult for our community to hear of food allergy tragedies. While allergy deaths aren’t common, they still hit very close to home.
We support the Pickerings’ efforts for further training and ingredient transparency in restaurants, in their state. We hope greater efforts are made right across North America.
In past, I’ve written on factors critical to a safe dining experience and common food allergy dining errors. One of the main issues for a patron is to understand the importance of ensuring that the server actually communicates with the cook, as opposed to making a safety assumption.
Also, I always suggest asking lots of allergy questions, even if these are questions you’ve asked before at a restaurant. Chefs can change and recipes can change.
I also hope more restaurants opt for menu transparency, whether the newer Food Code is adopted or not. In the hospitality industry, you want to feed people well, but also safely.
Related:
See CBS News Report
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