Lifelong vegetarian, 22, who has never eaten meat says she suffered stomach aches for two days after Ikea staff served her a pork and beef hot dog by mistake

  • Fern Jackson, 22, is furious after she was served a meat hot dog at IKEA in Devon
  • The lifelong vegetarian says she has never eaten meat in her life and became ill
  • Ms Jackson said after eating the meal she had painful stomach cramps for days

A lifelong vegetarian who has never eaten meat in her life is furious after being served a meat hot dog by mistake at a branch of Ikea.

Animal lover Fern Jackson, 22, was visiting her family earlier this month when they paid a trip to the Swedish furniture store.

But her lunchtime treat turned into a nightmare as she was given a meat hot dog instead of the vegetarian one she ordered.

Fern Jackson (above), 22, has never eaten meat in her life but is furious after being served a meat hot dog by mistake at am IKEA store in Exeter, Devon

Fern Jackson (above), 22, has never eaten meat in her life but is furious after being served a meat hot dog by mistake at am IKEA store in Exeter, Devon

Ikea has apologised for the mix-up but Miss Jackson said it was not good enough and she needed reassurance that it would not happen again.

Miss Jackson, who lives in Dorset and was visiting the store in Exeter, Devon, at the time, said: 'I ordered a vegetarian hot dog from the deli area and when it arrived it looked just like the picture that was shown next to it on the menu board.

'I put some ketchup on and took a bite, but as soon as I did I knew something was not quite right.

'I told my grandma it didn't taste right and we called the manager over to have a look.

'She told me it definitely wasn't a vegetarian hot dog.'

Miss Jackson asked to see what a vegetarian hot dog looked like, so the manager brought one over. 

'They look completely different. A meat hot dog looks like a normal Frankfurter but the vegetarian one is clearly lots of vegetables like peas and sweetcorn compressed together,' she said.

She said that she had put ketchup in her hot dog but when it came to taking a bite she knew something was not right

She said that she had put ketchup in her hot dog but when it came to taking a bite she knew something was not right

'I was so angry - it's the first time meat has passed between my lips in 22 years.

'I have never eaten meat, fish or even gelatin my entire life. My mum was even vegetarian when she was pregnant with me.'

Miss Jackson said by the time she got home she was in a lot of pain with stomach cramps.

She said: 'I think it left me pretty mentally shaken as well, I have never liked the idea of eating something that was once living and that has really played on my mind'

She said: 'I think it left me pretty mentally shaken as well, I have never liked the idea of eating something that was once living and that has really played on my mind'

She said: 'My body isn't used to meat so I think I had a bad reaction. It lasted for about two days.

'I think it left me pretty mentally shaken as well, I have never liked the idea of eating something that was once living and that has really played on my mind.'

Miss Jackson said by the time she got home she was in a lot of pain with stomach cramps (stock image)

Miss Jackson said by the time she got home she was in a lot of pain with stomach cramps (stock image)

Miss Jackson said the manager did apologise to her but said there was nothing more she could do. 

'If it were a Muslim and they had served them pork, that wouldn't be acceptable - so why is it any different for me? ... Sorry just doesn't cut it I'm afraid,' she said.

Ikea has apologised for the mix-up but Miss Jackson said it was not good enough and she needed reassurance that it would not happen again (stock image)

Ikea has apologised for the mix-up but Miss Jackson said it was not good enough and she needed reassurance that it would not happen again (stock image)

'I sent an email to Ikea's head office about it and they didn't get back to me.

'They did forward the email on to the manager at Exeter I had already spoken to and she said all the staff are re-doing their allergen training, but to me that is just not good enough.

'I want to know that they are changing the picture of the vegetarian hot dog on the menu so people don't get confused. If it has happened to me, it's bound to have happened to others elsewhere.

'I'm not after any compensation or anything - if I did get any I would donate it to an animal chairity.

'I want them to prove to me that this will never be allowed to happen again.. I'm very angry at the whole situation, it's been a really bad experience for me.'

Lorena Lourido, country IKEA food manager for IKEA UK & Ireland said: 'It is of the highest importance that ingredients in the food sold in our Restaurant, Swedish Food Market and Bistro are clearly communicated.

'We understand that this incident would have been extremely distressing for the customer and we have been in direct contact with them to apologise.

'We take this matter very seriously and we have reviewed our co-worker training on allergens and dietary preferences as a result.'