Nine years on: remembering Owen Carey

Today we remember Owen Carey – an 18-year-old young man who died after experiencing a fatal allergic reaction while celebrating his birthday on 22 April 2017 at a London restaurant with his family and girlfriend.

Owen had multiple food allergies and made staff aware of them before ordering. However, despite being reassured, the chicken burger had been marinated in buttermilk, to which he had a serious allergy. 

Following his tragic death, Owen’s family have campaigned tirelessly for improved allergy labelling in restaurants to help prevent similar incidents. Their work has contributed to the development of Owen’s Law, a campaign focused on improving how allergen information is provided in the UK. It includes:  

• Restaurants required by law to label the fourteen regulated allergens on their menus with standardised symbols, numbers or words.  

• Restaurants required by law to provide a full breakdown of ingredients for each dish in an allergen matrix.  

• Restaurants required by law to ask each customer about allergen requirements on all occasions. The duty manager to be obligated to directly supervise this process where allergens are present, with it being an offence if they fail to do so. 

Although many restaurants have already begun implementing these practices, they are not currently a legal requirement. 

Owen’s family have brought their campaign to Parliament and gained support from organisations such as the Food Standards Agency. Anaphylaxis UK has been supporting Owen’s family on this journey. 

Owen’s legacy continues through these efforts to create legislative change and protect others with serious allergies when eating away from home. 

Learn more about Owen’s Law. 

Georgina Jones, CEO of Anaphylaxis UK:  

“Nine years on, the loss of Owen to a preventable anaphylactic reaction remains a profound tragedy – one that continues to shape our mission at Anaphylaxis UK. 

Today we remember Owen, who like any other 18-year-old, set out to celebrate a birthday but never came home. Despite clearly communicating a serious allergy, he was unknowingly served food containing the very allergen he was seriously allergic to. The reaction that followed was rapid, catastrophic, and ultimately fatal. A vibrant young life, full of promise, was cut short.   

For Owen’s family, the grief has been immeasurable. For the seriously allergic community, the shock of this loss still resonates. It exposed gaps that existed and, in some places, still exist in how food businesses communicate allergen information. It has highlighted how easily a misunderstanding, a missing detail, or an assumption can have fatal consequences.  

As CEO of Anaphylaxis UK, I see this anniversary not only as a moment of remembrance but as a call to action. No family should endure such preventable heartbreak. Clear, consistent allergen information is not optional; it is a matter of safety and dignity.  

We honour Owen’s memory by continuing to advocate for change, awareness and working with the out of home food sector to protects every individual living with serious allergies.” 

Emma, Owen’s sister: 

“We, his family, have spent the past nine years campaigning for a change in the law that compels restaurants to state the 14 major allergens (prescribed by EU law) in their dishes in writing, at the point of ordering and without the customer having to ask. This simple change would eliminate the risk that exists at the point of order when a waiter does not fully understand, is not trained enough to process, or simply ignores the customer’s concerns about allergens in each dish. We’re also calling for better training for waiting staff, and for the proper recording of anaphylaxis deaths in the hope this will aid allergy research.  

Now supported by the Food Standards Agency (FSA), it is hoped that the Government can be persuaded to change the law. To do this we want to build on Natasha’s Law, which dealt with ingredients and allergy listings on pre-packaged food. Natasha’s Law showed that the UK’s allergen laws were flawed and needed reform, but it left an uneven situation where people consuming pre-packaged food have more protection than those eating in restaurants. 

In March 2025, after multiple meetings, the FSA updated their best practice guidance on providing allergen information to consumers effectively, in compliance with our wishes for Owen’s Law. Developed with food businesses, allergy charities, local authorities and people with food hypersensitivity, the FSA are in agreement that to make such changes are of little cost, but immeasurable benefit to those whose lives are blighted by allergies and anaphylaxis. One year on, we are awaiting the results of a review, hopefully showing there is still inadequate allergen labelling in food businesses, so cementing the guidance in law will be necessary to ensure compliance and keep allergic diners safe. 

Next week we have a meeting with Dame Angela Eagle DBE, Minister of State for Food Security and Rural Affairs. We hope to persuade her to follow the FSA’s lead, and enshrine the guidance in law. Our wish is that by this time next year – 10 years after Owen died – Owen’s Law will be official and the lives of allergy sufferers will be made safer,  and hopefully prevent future families suffering the immeasurable loss we’ve experienced.”