Answer to Question 1
Meeting such requirements makes menu planning more complex, both in terms of menu and recipe development and also in terms of ingredient sourcing. It is often a challenge to ensure that foods purchased from a distributor are truly gluten-free, peanut-free, dairy-free, and so on. As an example, micro-ingredients that may not be listed on a food ingredient label can sometimes include whey and other dairy products that can compromise the diet of an allergic customer.
Ensuring that production and serving environments are not accidentally contaminated with allergens, some operations have gone so far as to isolate specific production and consumption areas. Others offer commercially prepared and packaged convenience items that comply with various requirements, and provide access to their dedicated refrigerated and storage areas to students who need to maintain specialized diets.
Similar issues arise with religious diet restrictions. Schools with large Jewish populations, for example, sometimes maintain kosher kitchens and kosher dining halls or stations. Similar arrangements are increasingly being seen at schools with large Muslim populations who want halal compliant food. When such populations are small, compliant foods are sometimes outsourced from third parties and offered from dedicated coolers, display cases, stations and even vending machines.
Answer to Question 2
Today, food has become much more a part of personal lifestyle, health regimes and religious observances in institutional settings than it once was. Various legal implications and liabilities also come to play. For example, correctional institutions have been sued by inmates because they do not offer meals that comply with various religious preparation requirements. As noted in the text, Lesley University was sued for not adequately accommodating students with certain food allergies.
Many students today demand that vegan, vegetarian and gluten-free menu offerings always be available. Some schools have sought to integrate them into specialized stations in large dining halls, while others have sought to create specialized areas or dining halls that become destinations for students who want or need such fare.
Again, students at a college must be considered differently than ordinary consumers choosing where to dine in terms of a commercial restaurant. While students are usually no longer true captive customers, they still expect their schools to provide for specialized needs or wants, whereas in the commercial restaurant world they would simply choose a different restaurant.
Answer to Question 3
A
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