‘Do not eat’ alert as major supermarkets recall sauce over deadly risk,
A popular Chinese chilli sauce has been urgently recalled after it was found to contain undeclared peanuts—posing a potentially fatal risk to allergy sufferers.
Laoganma Black Bean Chilli Sauce, sold in 280g jars, is a cult favourite among food lovers and widely available in Asian supermarkets, independent grocers and online at retailers including Yau Brothers, Longdan and Japan Centre.
It is also stocked by some major supermarkets, including Sainsbury’s, where it features in the world foods aisle.
Distributor Fortune Foods Ltd has issued a recall of batch code 18232 with a best-before date of 8 March 2026.
In a statement, the firm said the issue was ‘isolated’ and ‘not all units are affected’, but warned: ‘Individuals with a peanut allergy may risk a serious or life-threatening allergic reaction if they consume this product.’
It added: ‘We deeply regret this incident and are taking immediate steps to strengthen our labelling and quality control procedures to prevent a recurrence.’
In an alert issued last night the Food Standards Agency (FSA) said; ‘If you have bought the above product and have an allergy to peanuts, do not eat it.
‘Instead return it to the store from where it was bought for a full refund.
Fortune Foods ‘is recalling the above product from customers and has been advised to contact the relevant allergy support organisations, which will tell their members about the recall,’ the agency added.
Peanut contamination can be fatal for allergy sufferers—exposure to just traces is enough to kill.
The Food Standards Agency said Fortune Foods has also issued ‘a point-of-sale notice to its customers,’ which explains the recall and instructs shoppers on what to do next.
‘These notices explain to customers why the product is being recalled and tell them what to do if they have bought the product,’ it said.
No other Laoganma products are known to be affected.
The FSA regularly issues allergy alerts when incorrect or missing labelling poses a threat to public health.
In this case, the absence of a peanut warning is considered serious enough to trigger a nationwide recall.
Peanut allergy is one of the most severe and potentially deadly food allergies, affecting around one in 50 children and one in 200 adults in the UK.
For some, even microscopic amounts of peanut protein can trigger anaphylaxis—a rapid, life-threatening allergic reaction.
Notable fatal cases in recent years have raised awareness of how devastating accidental exposure can be.
In 2016, 15-year-old Megan Lee died after ordering takeaway food that failed to disclose peanut content.
The restaurant owners were later jailed for manslaughter by gross negligence.
And in 2017, Natasha Ednan-Laperouse collapsed and died on a flight after unknowingly eating sesame in a Pret a Manger baguette.
Her death prompted new UK labelling laws—known as Natasha’s Law—mandating clearer allergy information on pre-packed foods.
While these cases involved sesame and takeaway food, experts warn that poor labelling on packaged goods—particularly imported products—remains a key risk for allergy sufferers.
The FSA urged all consumers to remain vigilant: ‘Sometimes foods have to be withdrawn or recalled if there is a risk to consumers because the allergy labelling is missing or incorrect or if there is any other food allergy risk.’
