Khalid Qadeer had been buying his favourite tuna baguette sandwich for 12 years

A Muslim man has described his shock after discovering a Pret A Manger sandwich he had been eating for 12 years is not halal.

Khalid Qadeer was 'stunned' when he realised his favourite tuna baguette sandwich contained white wine vinegar.

White wine vinegar is not considered halal in Islam but the ingredient is not listed on fridge labels in store.

Mr Qadeer, who works in London, said it is 'like a nut allergy' for many Muslims as they have 'zero tolerance' towards it.

He said 'Being a Muslim I can’t consume anything with alcohol. And there’s probably thousands of Muslims who buy products from Pret'.

'As most people know, some Muslims drink alcohol and the rest, but there is a certain percentage that will have a “oh what the f***” moment here.'

'I’ve worked in the City for the last 12 years as a tax adviser and I would have never bought the product had I known.'

Mr Qadeer complained to his local Pret store manager and his case was later raised to Pret’s CEO, Clive Schlee.

In an email seen by Metro.co.uk, the CEO said his 'technicians' have been 'calculating the alcohol content of the white wine vinegar' in the tuna mayo baguette.

Mr Schlee wrote: 'We have now established it contains much less than even a trace amount and is certainly well below the labelling threshold.'

'By way of comparison there is much less alcohol than you would find in most orange juices.'

Mr Qadeer later met the CEO in person at one of his stores in London but maintains his concerns have been ‘dismissed’. 

He said: 'Our tolerance to alcohol is nil. There’s no margin here.'

"He feels it’s my responsibility to check the ingredients on the website.

"To some extent it is but to a greater extent he should take responsibility that his Muslim customers have been consuming alcohol."

In response, Pret said their sandwiches have never been labelled as halal-certified.

Editor's comment - It isn't anything like a 'nut allergy'. Can you say the words 'Muslim' and 'scam artist' in the same sentence? He wouldn't possibly be after compensation, now would he?