Avoid food allergies with dining service options

Thursday, January 15, 2015

OSU Dining Services offers students options, including special menus and new software, to avoid problems with food allergies on campus and elsewhere in Stillwater.

The options target the top eight food allergies at OSU: milk, peanuts, tree nuts, fish, egg, soy, wheat and shellfish. Dining Services also considers gluten when making menus since it is an allergen that many students say they want to avoid. 

Tony Black, manager of OSU Dining Services, spent last summer creating a menu that is free of the allergens, so Nutrition Coordinator Cass Ring can customize a menu for individual students. “This menu offers plenty of options for all three meals and specific pick up times to work best around the student’s schedule,” said Ring. 

The student in need of the special menu must first meet with Ring, who will develop the menu and email it to the student. Orders from the menu must be placed by 2 p.m. the day before pick up to ensure that the food is made in a sterile environment.

NetNutrition is another resource that Dining Services added for those with allergens.  The program, three years in the making, includes all the dining options on campus and some Stillwater restaurants.  A student can click on specific allergies they suffer from and see all the menu options across campus that are available. 

“NetNutrition is to be used as a starting point for those who are unsure of how to avoid a certain food or ingredient,” said Ring. “Menus for many places change day-to-day and it is up to the student to ensure that the food they eat is good for them.”

“I am a senior and was not aware of all the different programs that Dining Services has to offer,” said Kaitlin Loyd, strategic communications senior. “After talking to Cass, I felt more comfortable making healthy decisions when I eat on campus.”

For those that suffer from gluten allergies or Celiac disease, the Service Station may be the place for you, since it offers a variety of gluten free options that are immediately available for lunch and dinner. Adams Market is also caters to those who need to avoid gluten. 

For more information about food allergies and how dining services can help you, contact Cass Ring at cass.ring@okstate.edu 405-744-3345 or visit dining.okstate.edu/nutrition.

Story by Alex Marianos