New York Ballet Dancer Dies After Eating Mislabeled Cookie

A New York City ballerina has died at age 25 after eating a mislabeled cookie from a grocery store in Connecticut.

U.K. native Órla Baxendale, who had a severe peanut allergy, died Jan. 11 after going into anaphylactic shock after eating a cookie at a social event, according to E! News.

The cookie's label did not disclose that it contained peanuts.

Baxendale's lawyer Marijo Adimey says the ballet dancer was extremely cautious regarding her allergy and even Googled soy nuts — an ingredient listed on the package — to make sure the ingredient wasn't a nut.

"Because Orla was so vigilant and so careful with everything she touched, she actually Googled 'soy nut,' which is on the package, wanting to make sure that a soy nut wasn't a nut," Adimey told ABC News.

"Órla ... always carried an EpiPen with her and surrounded herself with people who know how to administer one," Adimey added, according to The Independent.

Baxendale reportedly began experiencing an allergic reaction after taking a bite of grocery chain Stew Leonard's Vanilla Florentine cookie, after which her friends immediately administered an EpiPen and rushed her to the hospital.

According to E!, Stew Leonard Jr., CEO of the grocery store chain, claimed they were not aware that the manufacturer, Cookies United, had changed the cookie recipe to include peanuts instead of soy nuts.

READ MORE: Adult Film Star Jesse Jane Dead at 43

However, Cookies United released a statement claiming otherwise.

"Unfortunately, considering the tragedy of these circumstances, we need to point out that Stew Leonard's was notified by Cookies United in July of 2023 that this product now contains peanuts, and all products shipped to them have been labeled accordingly. This product is sold under the Stew Leonard's brand and repackaged at their facilities. The incorrect label was created by, and applied to, their product by Stew Leonard's," the manufacturer said on Jan. 23.

Stew Leonard's has since recalled the Vanilla Florentine cookies.

Meanwhile, Baxendale's family is "distraught" over their daughter's death.

"They're too distraught to speak. They want this story out so it doesn't happen again," Adimey told ABC.

Speaking to ABC, Baxendale's dance instructor, Guillermo Asca, remembered the dancer as "vibrant."

"For someone to leave us so young and so soon at the height of [their] career is a tragedy. She was vibrant, dynamic, kooky, someone who didn't take herself seriously but took work seriously," Asca said.