The bakery sells pork quiche to Muslims. Backlash forces closure
Occasionally, a seemingly trivial mistake can cost us a lot in terms of health and nerves. That was the case this time. One of the employees at the French bakery La Verr’in Dallery Pittie accidentally packed a quiche with bacon, thinking she was selling a cheese quiche. Unfortunately, the customers were Muslims.
It all started with a small mistake at the bakery "La Verr’in Dallery Pittie" in a small French town during the sale of one of the products. The shop assistant accidentally packed a quiche with bacon instead of the cheese version, unleashing chaos.
The bakery owner, Alexandre Dallery, described the situation as highly stressful. The customers, who, according to their religion, cannot consume pork, returned to the store with anger and frustration written all over their faces. Dallery admitted that a mistake had been made, for which he immediately apologised and offered a refund. Unfortunately, that was not enough to defuse the situation.
The men began to threaten the owner and staff, declaring that if the bakery continued to sell products with pork, they would destroy the entire premises. Vulgar words and aggressive behaviour only deepened the tense atmosphere.
Dallery expressed concerns for the safety of his employees, mentioning that if he hadn't been present, a physical attack on the shop assistant could have occurred.
They wanted to burn everything down. They were ready to grab the employee by the hair and beat her - he said in French media.
Fear of escalating violence prompted the owner to take drastic measures. Despite previous attempts to maintain an offer that included pork products, Dallery decided to stop selling them, prioritising the safety of both himself and his employees.
Furthermore, this was not the first time the bakery had become the target of threats. Dallery admitted that he had been under pressure for several months to introduce halal products. This term mainly refers to the method of preparing meat. For meat to be halal, the animal must be healthy at the time of slaughter and must be killed by cutting the throat by a Muslim who pronounces the words "Bismillah" (in the name of God) before the slaughter. Additionally, the tools used for slaughter must be sharp to minimise the animal's suffering.
The decision is made
The recent incident was the last straw, leading the owner to sell his business. The bakery, which employed 15 people, was sold, and Dallery stepped down from running the business to avoid further conflicts and ensure the safety of his team.
The decision was difficult, but as Dallery explains, it was primarily motivated by safety concerns. The whole situation sparked a nationwide discussion on the freedom of business operations, religious tolerance, and the boundaries that should be respected in a multicultural society.
