Samaras Lebanese Wollongong fined over Nathan Anderson’s death

A Wollongong restaurant has been fined more than $100,000 after a young dad died after eating hummus.

The owners of a popular Illawarra restaurant have been fined more than $100,000 following a man’s death, after he was served a dish which contained sesame seeds, despite him explaining his severe allergies.

Nathan Anderson, a Sydney father of two children, was visiting Wollongong on October 27, 2017, when he attended Samaras Lebanese restaurant at its former home on Corrimal Street in Wollongong with a group of friends.

On Wednesday, the restaurant was fined more than $110,000 in the Supreme Court, after Justice Clifton Hoeben found Mr Anderson had been clear about his allergies with the server when ordering his meal.

Samaras Lebanese Restaurant in Wollongong has been fined $100,000.

Mr Anderson was provided a meal the server had promised was free of peanuts, shellfish, eggs and sesame seeds. However, he was served hummus as part of his dish, which included tahini, a paste made from sesame seeds.

Upon taking one or two bites of the bread dipped in the hummus from the plate, Mr Anderson complained about being uncomfortable and left the restaurant.

He was followed by his cousin down Corrimal Street towards the accommodation in which he was staying. However, about 150 metres from the restaurant, Mr Anderson was struggling to breathe and appeared to be panicking.

He collapsed on the footpath. When paramedics arrived, they realised he was rushing to his accomodation to get his EpiPen, which gives people suffering from anaphylaxis, a severe allergic reaction, a shot of epinephrine to open their airways.

Mr Anderson was rushed to hospital and put on life support but died three days later on October 31.

Nathan Anderson died three days after eating seaseme seeds in 2017.

After Mr Anderson’s death, Samaras Food, was prosecuted by the NSW Food Authority for not ensuring food it served was safe, and pleaded guilty to the offence.

In a written judgment, the court found Mr Anderson had developed anaphylaxis as a result of the consumption of sesame paste in the hummus.

In his judgment, Justice Hoeben found Samara’s had taken steps to ensure better staff training and food safety.

“I am satisfied that there will be no repetition on the defendant’s part, of the conduct which led to this prosecution,” he said.

“I do accept that there is some room for the application of general deterrence, although even that consideration needs to be substantially discounted having regard to the good conduct of the defendant during the three years which have elapsed since the incident.”

He rejected claims Samara’s would have difficulty paying any penalties, and ordered a fine of $105,000 plus costs of almost $199,000.

At the time of his death, a GoFundMe page was established, which described Mr Anderson as a “genuine, loving, fun guy and a great father who had much more to offer this world”.

“His memory will live on through those he knew and through his children, and to the many lives he saved through organ donation,” the post read.

“Nate’s loss has left a devastating hole in his family’s life.”

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