Being forced to pull toffee apples off shelf the day before Halloween is the stuff of nightmares - one that’s become all too real for Sainsbury’s.

The retailer has recalled toffee apples from its stores in Northern Ireland, Scotland and Northern England because their label does not warn allergy sufferers that they contain milk.

All products with date codes until 2 November 2012 are affected.

“As soon as we were alerted to the problem we took all product off display in the affected stores and, after investigating the matter with our supplier, issued an allergy alert - this was done in a matter of hours,” said a Sainsbury’s spokesman. “We’re sorry for any inconvenience.”

Sainsbury’s said the alert only applied to toffee apples from one of the three suppliers it uses across the country, and promised shoppers in the affected areas that toffee apples would be back on shelf tomorrow, in time for trick or treating.

The retailer has contacted relevant allergy support organisations, who will inform ‘at risk’ members of the incident. Customers who have purchased the affected product can return it to their nearest Sainsbury’s store for a full refund.

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