to meeting the dietary needs of students. This may be a serious problem for a
food provider that advertised its ability to meet the needs of all students.

Willie Lum, Director of Food Services, did not respond to attempts to request comment on
how the Dining Hall was planning to accommodate students with special dietary needs;
however, Neufeld did. In regards to accommodating student needs, she had this to say:

“We have a section in there that is a vegetarian section and a vegan section. So we have

four vegan or vegetarian options a day. We also have the salad bar, which provides options
for both. The biggest thing that we have been talking to students about is the My Pantry
option. So with My Pantry there is the option to cook your own food based on whatever your
dietary needs are. And because we have had some students with unique food allergies, we
have actually worked it out with our head chef that if you have any specific dietary needs

he can specifically order food in for you and hold it in the back. So instead of it being public
food for everyone, you can have your own food stored in the back. That way you can just go
in, tell them who you are, and they can give you your food and you can cook it yourself-”

However, the idea of accommodation and the reality may not be as close as some

may think. Sue Rahimtula, a student in the Education Program came to Over the Edge
to discuss some of the problems she has been dealing with. She came to UNBC from
Surrey in September. Since she was new to Prince George and it was a very convenient
option, she decided to live on residence and purchase the meal plan (at the time she
had no idea that the meal plan was mandatory for students with less than 60 credit
hours living in residence). She had also received a financial award from Food Services
designed to help pay for housing and food costs. However, Rahimtula did not realize
that her wheat allergy would mean a semester-long fight with Food Services.

“Three weeks in I’m going ‘okay, this is not working for me’ And I tried to get off the
meal plan and I discovered that in your housing you automatically sign a contract. I
wasn’t aware of the small print... I don’t even have that contract,’ Rahimtula told Over
the Edge. “Nevertheless, I have a wheat allergy and I’m thinking ‘well, this [contract]
shouldn’t matter, I should be able to get some help’ So I tried to find out what the
problem is with the cafeteria, if they are able to help me in any way. They basically say
that I can’t take food out of the cafeteria, I can’t bring food inside, I can’t bring friends
inside to the cafeteria [which] totally isolated me... And I’m getting sicker and sicker.’

Rahimtula began looking into Food Services and the rules surrounding the meal plan.
She figured that, since there are kitchens in residence, she might be able to get refunded
for the meal plan and cook her own food in her dorm. However, the exemption process
was far from simple for her. Rahimtula told Over the Edge that she was in contact

with Food Services discussing her health problems due to her dietary restrictions for
nearly the entirety of the Fall Semester. She was not told until near the end of the
semester that an exemption form existed for people with dietary health issues.

Over the winter break, Rahimtula went home to her family doctor to get a

note regarding her wheat allergy. She said that the doctor’s note specifically

said she should be cooking her own food in her own kitchen. With the doctor’s
note, she filled out the exemption form and went through the process.

Neufeld explained the exemption process: ““We do have an exemption process. The
biggest thing behind the exemption process is we are looking at whether or not it is

a medical condition which leads to an exemption, or if it is a food preference. So that

is our two big defining factors. The student fills out the exemption form, which has
supporting documentation for a doctor’s note or things like that. Then an independent

The Feature

committee reviews it. So we have about four people on the committee from different
areas of the university, so not just food, that get to look over it and decide based on that
if they either have a meeting with the chef to see if we can meet the specific dietary
needs, if they receive automatic exemption, or if they can receive partial exemption.”

For Rahimtula, the final result of the process was unsatisfactory. She only received
partial exemption for the winter semester despite the doctor’s note. This partial
exemption also did not come in the form of money like she had been hoping, but
in the form of $900 worth of Dining Hall dining dollars. On top of that, her food-
related award was taken away, since she was trying to opt out of the service.

“Now, I have my undergraduate degree,” said Rahimtula. “I’m 33 years of age.
I’m not a child, I know how to cook. I obviously have a problem and I need some
accommodations done. I need my money back and I’m not able to get it.”

Neufeld explained this decision based on the committee’s reasoning that the Dining Hall could
accommodate Rahimtula’s needs for a certain percentage of the time, specifically due to the
My Pantry option. “It was either no exemption or dining dollars,” Neufeld told Over the Edge.

“I’m getting frustrated because | feel like I am getting bullied; that my needs as a student
are not being met,” said Rahimtula. “It’s kind of unfair that I am being treated this way.

My wheat allergy has not been dealt with. I had a doctor’s note that I spent a lot of time
getting... 1 don’t think they are taking into consideration that people have health problems
and if the plan doesn’t accommodate them, [UNBC] should accommodate the student.”

While it is believed that My Pantry should be able to meet the needs of most students

with sensitivities and allergies, the fear of cross-contamination is very real for these
students. Graduate student Meghan Sterling, who has severe celiac disease, said that she
was afraid to even enter the dining hall due to possible cross-contamination. “Avoiding
gluten requires a level of exceptional vigilance, and any food preparation or storage area
where items with wheat or gluten are made and served increases the risk that anything
gluten free may be cross-contaminated,” Sterling said. “Additionally, many items that seem
to be gluten free or safe are not. A lot of spice companies use flour on their lines, etc.”

The close proximity of cook stations is also a reason for concern, since somebody may

be preparing food that another student is sensitive, allergic, or intolerant to inches from
their food. However, the issue of cross-contamination is apparently not one that has been
brought up with Neufeld. “From our side [the issue of My Pantry cross-contamination] has
not been brought to our attention,” she said. “The biggest concerns we have had with the
My Pantry is students who are not comfortable cooking. So what we have done with that is
hosting Food Education classes where we teach students how to cook basic foods or more
complex dishes. But more just getting them comfortable with that cooking atmosphere”

There are clearly some serious problems with the new Dining Hall on campus. One can hope
that this is just one of the hurdles that UNBC Food Services have to jump while they are
making the new transition. However, for students like Rahimtula that may offer little comfort.

“I’m not trying to be disrespectful or cause a problem or make [UNBC] look bad. I just think
that maybe they are not aware of these certain things,” said Rahimtula. “And maybe other
students need to be told that if you go on the meal plan that this happens. You need to make
sure that if you have any allergies you don’t go on the plan and don’t stay [on campus].”