A Stoke-on-Trent woman who is allergic to dairy has blasted Starbucks after being charged extra for soy milk in her Starbucks coffee.

Jovi Mullen, 26, bought a latte at a Dublin airport branch of the popular coffee shop and says she was stunned when it cost her €5.15 (£4.59).

Jovi, who is lactose-intolerant, says the barista charged her an extra 60 cent (53p) for soy milk, which she called 'a necessity'. 

Tweeting her horror, Jovi, who is originally from Ireland said: 'Just paid over €5 (£4.46) for one coffee at @StarbucksIe at Dublin airport, 60c (53p) charge for soy milk! Not my fault I'm allergic to dairy.'

She says she also paid an extra 43p (60 cents) for vanilla syrup.

Jovi hashtagged her post 'necessity not preference' to highlight her point that she shouldn't have to pay extra for soy milk.

And to make the whole situation worse the barista also spelled her name wrong, calling her 'Jode' instead of 'Jovi' - even though she says she spelled it out for him.  

Jovi said none of her local chains in Waterford or in the UK have ever charged her extra for the dairy-free milk.

She told Dublin Live: "It's my usual order. I am [lactose intolerant] so I always have to have soy milk.' 

While she acknowledged having coffee was not a 'necessity', she went on to tweet that she felt having a non-dairy substitute was. 

She continued: "It's a shame you have to pay extra for something you have no control over."

A spokesperson for Starbucks said stores may vary in price to reflect 'the cost of doing business in that location'.


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In 2017, the cost of a Starbucks latte in Ireland was £2.74, with syrup costing 51p extra.

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