Her parents don't want such a drama to happen again.
In 2014, little Lilian died after choking on a piece of Knacki sausage.
This Monday, the Herta company, prosecuted for manslaughter, appears before the criminal court of Dax (Landes).
Herta, whose president Arnaud de Belloy will be present at the hearing, is sued by Florence and Vincent Lerbey, for "manslaughter by manifestly deliberate violation of an obligation of safety or prudence" laid down by the Consumer Code .
They don't want such a drama to happen again.
Their 2 year and 11 month old son died on August 11, 2014 in a campsite in Messanges, on the Landes coast, where the Bordeaux family was staying in a mobile home.
That day, after returning from the beach with a couple of friends and their children, the mother prepares the meal for the little ones.
On the menu, green beans and Knacki sausages that she cuts into slices.
After a few bites, Lilian gets up, takes his throat in his hands, he chokes.
Florence Lerbey immediately alerted her husband and her friend, a nurse anesthetist.
She tries to remove the piece from the little one's throat, make him cough, practice the Heimlich maneuver and pat him on the back, keeping him flat on her knees while the mother calls 15.
A material that can "stick to the trachea"
Dad also takes him by the feet, upside down.
Nothing works.
It's cardiac arrest.
The piece of sausage ends up being removed by the nurse using special pliers when the firefighters arrive.
But neither they nor the Samu will manage to restart the child's heart.
If Lilian's parents finally lodged a complaint against Herta, "it is not for money but so that there is an awareness of consumers who are unaware of the dangerousness of this product", affirms Me Philippe Courtois, family lawyer.
The "diameter of these sausages corresponds to the esophagus of the smallest and their spongy material can stick to the trachea", he adds.
At the time, only a "recommendation for the youngest" to cut into "very small pieces" was indicated on the packages.
Since 2015, at the request of the Lerbey family, a new mention with warning logo appears on the back of the packaging: “For children under 4 years old, cut the sausage lengthwise then into very small pieces in order to to prevent the risk of suffocation ”.
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In a recent press release, Herta specifies having then, “in accordance with the wishes” of the Lerbey, encouraged other manufacturers of fine pasta sausages to use these terms, which they “mostly” did.
Lilian's parents want this text to be put on the front of the packages for more visibility.
They would also like an advertising campaign to publicize this risk which has already been tragic for some other children.
In 2018, the Paris Court of Appeal found Herta responsible for the handicap of a 3-year-old girl who had been close to death with a "Knacki ball" six years earlier, and compensated the parents, considering that the packaging did not sufficiently prevent the potential danger.