Traditions at Scott dining hall during the winter of 2022. Ohio State has worked to create a safe environment for students with allergies and dietary restrictions, including adding nutritional icons to campus menus that specify which foods fall under certain needs. Credit: Lantern File Photo
Every meal is an adventure for Rya Fitch.
The second-year in medical anthropology is allergic to fish, nuts and many fruits, so each time Fitch seeks food, they are also in search of a thorough description of ingredients.
“People who don’t have allergies themselves just are either unaware [or] I guess can’t fully grasp the severity of having an allergy,” Fitch said.
They have repeatedly been met with the disappointing figure of an exclamation point on Grubhub and campus nutritional labels, signifying that the food has not yet been reviewed for allergens.
According to Ohio State’s dining website, items with an exclamation point “have not yet been reviewed by the dining services dietitian”, and can therefore not be labeled or verify the presence of allergens.
Students with dietary restrictions — from allergies to religious restrictions — face a similar dilemma each time they eat on campus, avoiding certain products and sticking with go-to safe spots. In recent years, Ohio State has hosted food fairs for specific dietary needs, so students can sample products and make recommendations to dining services, Dave Isaacs, spokesperson for Student Life, said.
“Our mission is to have as diverse and wide variety of quality food as much as we possibly can,” Isaacs said.
Grace Lamparyk, a first-year in theatre, said she was surprised with the selection of vegan options at Ohio State.
“That was my biggest fear about going to college, that I wouldn’t have any food to eat. But Ohio State has been very accommodating,” Lamparyk said.
Meals tend to become repetitive with what vegan selections are available, but Lamparyk said she is relatively content with her options.
“It would be nice if they had a little more, but they already have way more than I was expecting,” Lamparyk said.
Campus menus include dietary nutritional icons that indicate whether foods fall under specific needs, Student Life marketing specialist Noelle Bartley said. Starting this year, students with allergies will now receive their receipts with a purple sticker to indicate that their meal was handled correctly.
“Unless it’s [a limited-time offer] it should have a dietary nutritional icon associated with it,” Bartley said.
Training procedures are in place for students and professional staff to correctly handle food accommodations, according to Isaacs. If further assistance is needed, students can contact a registered dietitian on campus.
It’s not always that easy, though, according to Fitch. On one occasion, they walked into a dining hall and asked a worker if a certain product had sesame in it and could get no clear answer.
“Half of the food that they’re serving doesn’t have allergen information available,” Fitch said.
Gabrielle Hardisky, a first-year in music education, said she is hesitant to eat certain dishes on campus due to fear of cross-contamination in preparation.
“Sometimes they don’t mark those foods and then it’s kind of like a guessing game of whether or not I can actually eat it or not,” Hardinsky said.
Isaacs encouraged students to reach out to dining services if they are experiencing trouble navigating specific dietary needs on campus.
“We want to know if a student has something that we need to take into account,” Isaacs said.
