A woman with severe food allergies has gone viral after revealing how she orders Starbucks’ iconic pink drink.
Mia, who says that she has more than 50 food allergies, shared a video on TikTok this week of herself ordering the beverage at her local Starbucks. After greeting the barista at the register, she specified the way in which she wanted the pink drink to be made due to her allergies.
“Can I please have the venti pink drink with light ice, and if possible, I have a lot of severe food allergies, [so] can you make the drink in a sanitised shaker to avoid cross-contact?” she said.
The TikTok user, who goes by the name @theallergicgirl, then pointed out in the text over the video that the barista remembered her. She then showed off the drink, which is made with coconut milk and strawberries. On the cup, it was written that the beverage was in a “sanitised shaker” before being served.
Mia’s clip ended with her taking a sip of the drink as she walked down the street. In the caption, she poked fun at her Starbucks order, writing: “Proof that I can have Starbucks even though I’m ‘allergic to everything.’”
As of 17 April, the video has more than 346,500 views, with TikTok users praising Mia for this advice.
“Easy as pie,” one wrote, while another added: “My celiac self will definitely be doing this! Thanks!!”
Other people who said they worked in the food industry also noted that they sanitise their kitchen utensils and appliances when customers mention their allergies.
“I do this for customers a lot !!! It doesn’t take a lot of work and makes me happy to know ur safe,” one responded to Mia’s video.
“I made sure to wash and sanitise the tongs cause I had someone who couldn’t have any type of pork,” another added.
However, other viewers claimed that cross contact between food ingredients can still occur, despite Mia’s request for the Starbucks’ shaker to be cleaned.
“I’ve had people ask to use different cups for heating alternative milk and we honestly would use the other milk ones for reg milk too,” one viewer claimed.
“I don’t think we can promise you that it won’t cross contact,” another added.
Cross contact can occur “when one food comes into contact with another,” and while the amount of the other food can be “so small that they usually cannot be seen”, this can still “affect people with food allergies,” according to the Mayo Clinic.
Some ways to prevent cross contact include washing dishes after each use, keeping foods with allergens covered, and using separate appliances for specific foods.
The Independent has contacted Mia and Starbucks for comment.
This isn’t the first time Mia has shared her experience at Starbucks. In a video posted to TikTok last year, she called a different Starbucks store out after claiming that a barista there ignored her allergy requests.
She said that when she put in her order, she asked for the shake to be sanitised before the drink was made. She claimed that when the barista asked her co-worker what that meant, they responded: “Do what you think is best.”
According to Mia, the barista proceeded to rinse out the Starbucks shaker with cold water, which she pointed out was “not the same thing as sanitising”. When she was handed her drink order, she confronted the barista and asked whether it was properly sanitised, to which he said: “I did the best I could.”
“I tossed the drink in the trash because I was not going to risk my life for that,” Mia said at the end of the video.
Speaking to The Independent in August 2022, Mia said that uses her platform to highlight some of the daily struggles people with allergies go through, such as ordering a coffee.
“Eating out is a huge risk on its own,” she said. “Even if they say that it’s safe, you can never fully guarantee. You can never fully trust unless you’re making the food yourself.”
