Today I wanted to write about something that I found very interesting and amazing all at the same time. I was walking through the dining room in C4 at Binghamton University, and noticed that a new station was opening up offering allergy friendly foods. Binghamton University's food service is ran by Sodexo, which services many different campus' as well as other on-site services. These Allergen Free foods are made in a separate area in the C4 dining hall without the use of the top 8 allergens. These allergens are Milk, Eggs, Peanuts, Tree Nuts, Fish, Shellfish, Soy, and Wheat. I found this very interesting because as you know, I am an food and latex allergy advocate and have been for the past 7 years and to my knowledge there are no other universities that offer this. Binghamton already has a Latex Free Facility, so there is no use of Latex gloves in the food service establishments across campus, but this is something new. Through my online research, I have found that some universities have offered compromises for students suffering from allergies, but nothing like this has been done. Being a Binghamton University student, I expect nothing less than our University to set a precedent for other Universities across the country.
News as recent as January of this year, there has been a legal struggle against Lesley University in Massachusetts for not providing foods for allergy suffers and thanks to the students who were apart of the law suit, the allergy advocates world is celebrating from their strives.
"DOJ's Civil Rights Division announced last month that the Americans With Disabilities Act applies to students at Lesley University in Cambridge, Ma., who claimed that the school's food services and meal plans were inadequate for their needs. It was the first food allergy-related settlement under ADA in higher education, says a DOJ spokeswoman.
In the agreement with DOJ, Lesley is required provide gluten- and allergen-free food options in its dining halls, offer special meal plans for students with allergies, and pay $50,000 in damages to the students who filed the claim in 2009, among other measures." NPR News
The day the station at Binghamton opened up, I decided to stop and speak with Tammy Coroa the manager of C4 and asked her a few questions that were on my mind about cross contamination and the station itself. With food allergies specifically, there is a very high risk of cross contamination and usually very hard to prevent it in a setting like the resident dining halls. Ms. Coroa had explained to me that her employees are trained and continue to be trained about the severity of allergies, as well as how to avoid cross contamination. All of the utensils and cooking supplies for the Allergy friendly section are a light purple color, indicating to staff that they are only to be used in this one section. I had noticed they are using this kit in this facility, as well as other supplies from the same company, San Jamar. I also came across this video explaining their products
Also they are trying to prevent cross contamination by not allowing students to place their trays down on the counter by the food, as well as giving each student a new plate if they order food from this station. I think the concept is a great idea, and a step in the right direction to help students with food allergies feel less excluded as well as provide safe meals for them. Like I said, definitely a step in the right direction.
This dining service is calling Simple Servings which I think fits perfectly because again, it does not scream "I have an allergy" and I believe that is extremely important. I know I am very proud to be going to a school that is constantly making strives to keep everyone healthy and safe and is constantly setting precedents for other Universities.
There also is nothing mentioned on their website about the new allergy friendly options, so I am not sure if and how they plan to advertise this, but when they do, I think it will become a great success. As an Allergy Advocate, I love seeing this type of progression, especially when its at the school I attend!
If there are any advancements with this I will be sure to share!
Feel free to contact me with any questions or opinions about this! I would love to hear and share with Sodexo!
