Allergic man revived after near-fatal bite | Rotorua News | Local News in Rotorua

A steak and salad sandwich was almost Charles Aquin's last meal.

Now the Rotorua man is calling for mandatory labelling of all over-the-counter food products.

The sales consultant, who is allergic to peanuts, bought the sandwich at a Rotorua eatery.

He took two bites and within seconds was fighting for his life.

Unknown to him, the steak had been fried in peanut butter.

His body instantly had an anaphylactic reaction to the potentially fatal ingredient, causing him to vomit and have trouble breathing.

He injected himself with an emergency shot of adrenalin before driving himself to Rotorua Hospital where he collapsed.

By law, all pre-packaged food must have ingredients labelled but those rules don't apply to foods manufactured on site at cafes, bakeries and restaurants.

Mr Aquin says if it had been labelled as satay steak rather than just steak, he would not have bought the sandwich. He says it should have been labelled correctly.

Leng Lim, owner of Bakehouse Cafe where Mr Aquin bought the sandwich, says it's impossible to list all ingredients on a label and it was Mr Aquin's responsibility as an allergy sufferer to protect his own health by asking what a sandwich contained.

Mr Aquin bought the sandwich, labelled "steak and salad", from the Tutanekai St cafe on Sunday morning before work.

He did not ask staff if the steak had been cooked using peanut butter or oil but said he had never had problems with sandwiches there before.

Small business owners - especially in a tourist town like Rotorua - should have a "moral responsibility" to label food correctly, he said.

"Just because they make their food on the premises, they shouldn't be exempt from labelling laws."

Mr Aquin sat on the back of his ute outside work to eat the sandwich when he went into shock about 12.30pm.

He vomited and instantly felt his airway constrict. Fortunately he had an EpiPen in the ute - a device containing adrenalin users inject into their leg in emergencies. The shot meant he could function long enough to drive to Rotorua Hospital's emergency department.

At 12.40pm he collapsed and was given more life-saving drugs.

He stayed in hospital until 5pm and was off work for a day and a half.

On Monday he complained about the labelling to Toi Te Ora Public Health.

"They have the labelling equipment and it's not difficult to get it right."

He fears for the safety of other allergy sufferers buying non-labelled food or products labelled incorrectly.

"Cafes could have a death on their hands."

Ross Price, a senior health protection officer with Toi Te Ora Public Health, said the Bakehouse Cafe did not breach any laws.

However, it was concerning the sandwich was not accurately labelled.

"People with food allergies need to be extremely diligent about what they eat and anyone unsure should ask staff.

"In saying that, if food outlets are labelling their products, the information provided should be accurate."

The case will be reported to the New Zealand Food Safety Authority and the cafe is being spoken to about correct labelling.