Making Meals Inclusive: A Quick Guide for Gathering People Around Food.

Food is social. Cultures around the world celebrate and socialize together over food. But what happens when people with different food requirements are invited to participate in your shared meal? How can you make sure that participants feel included?

It’s important to understand why people might not want to eat or drink certain foods. Understanding the reasoning can help you avoid causing unnecessary risk of physical or moral distress, such as in cases of allergies, ethics, or religious observance.

The reasons vary and can be quite personal. If people don’t voluntarily share, use your judgment about asking for more details. However, some of the more common reasons include the following:

1. Food allergies. These can be life-threatening and should not be taken lightly. If in doubt, ask if it is severe or not.
2. Food intolerances. Sometimes foods don’t agree with people and will cause them discomfort, but will not otherwise risk their lives, as is the case with dairy or wheat intolerance.
3. Moral objections. Moral objections may include concerns around animal rights, animal welfare, environmental protection, and human slavery.
4. Religion. Religious objections can range from simple avoidance of eating certain animals (pigs or cows, for example) or plants (potatoes, garlic, and onions, for example) to full-on requirements of religious certification of the food (such as Kosher certification). Alcohol is another common item that is frequently eschewed by various religions.

In the Getty Center auditorium for the recent “There Will Be Food“ panel.

In all cases, it’s best to strive to accommodate the participants' requirements if you want everyone to feel equally included. If you need help accommodating someone, talk to them and ask for suggestions. In some cases, such as with severe allergies or Kosher requirements, the best solution is to get the food professionally catered from a certified establishment. Please also consider not serving the item(s) to which the person is allergic at the same event.

In cases where you wish to provide the food yourself, it is important that you understand what item(s) the person seeks to avoid, along with some of the alternative names for them. See Appendix A: Commonly Overlooked Ingredients for more detail.

Grilled corn on the cob is a summertime favourite.

Labelling Food

Knowing what not to include is a great first step, but it will still leave your guests guessing what is safe to eat. So what can you do? In cases where there is table service, telling your guest that they have a meal that meets their requirements can be enough. But often, larger social events are set up as a buffet. In that case, the best thing is to label all of the dishes. For the labels to be helpful, however, they should contain the following information:

1. The name of the dish.
2. A list of ingredients with common allergens in bold (see Appendix B: Common Allergens).
3. For bonus points, consider some additional icons for at-a-glance reference for dishes that are suitable for vegans, gluten-free, kosher, etc.

Preparing and Handling Food

The final thing to consider is cross-contamination. This is particularly important with allergies due to the potentially life-threatening nature of exposure to an allergen but bears consideration in all cases to help ensure the comfort of all guests.

When preparing food that someone with allergies may consume, thoroughly clean the surfaces (counters, sinks, cutting boards, stove tops) and equipment (knives, serving utensils, pots, pans, etc.) with a generous amount of soap and hot water.

Do the food preparation for allergy-friendly meals before any food preparation for any meals that may include allergens. For example, clean your kitchen, make the food that will be shared, and when it is properly stored for later service, make yourself a PB&J sandwich.

If making food on a grill, either make the plant-based foods first or reserve a section of the grill for the plant-based foods and use separate cooking utensils for the animal ingredients and the plant-based foods.

Do not store foods containing allergens next to the allergen-free foods in the fridge or freezer.

Do not use the same cooking surfaces or cooking utensils for different food types to help avoid cross-contamination.

Quantities

Remember that the point of commensality is to share food. If you only provide enough of a specific meal to feed one person, they do not get to participate in the sharing aspect of the meal.

Plant-based foods, in particular, can be made suitable for just about everyone and, when well prepared, are often quite popular at events. Be sure to provide enough for everyone present! There is nothing quite so disheartening as someone getting to the buffet to find that there is no more of the food that they were looking forward to eating.

Appendix A: Commonly Overlooked Ingredients

For vegans, vegetarians, and plant-based eaters

• Alcohol. For people who eschew some or all animal ingredients, some alcohols may pose problems. Be on the lookout for obvious ingredients such as honey or dairy. Some alcohols, such as many European beers and wines, are filtered with gelatin or fish. This last is much harder to determine as it may not be disclosed on the packaging. If unsure, leave the ingredient out.
• Fish. Examples include fish sauce, Worcestershire sauce, oyster sauce, etc. These are common ingredients hiding in otherwise plant-based foods, rendering them unsuitable for people who avoid animal ingredients. Additionally, as with gelatin, fish products are a common ingredient used in the processing of some alcoholic beverages, such as some wines and beers.
• Gelatin. Examples include marshmallows, Jello, gummy candies, Mentos, etc. Gelatin is also sometimes used to process alcoholic beverages, which can be complicated as it does not always appear in the ingredients.
• Honey, bee pollen, honeycomb, beeswax, etc. All are derived from animals and not consumed by many people, including vegans, for ethical, and environmental reasons.
• Insects. Many people don’t realize that insects are a popular food additive, and there is a growing trend to use insects as a primary source of protein. These ingredients are not suitable for people who do not eat other animals. Examples include Carmine, cochineal, cochineal extract, crimson lake, E120, shellac (sometimes also called “confectioner’s glaze”), and cricket flour.
• Impossible products. While plant-based, Impossible has engaged in animal vivisection and thus is often eschewed by vegans. Impossible themselves point out that they “created [their] products with meat-eaters in mind”. As such, it is not safe to assume that a vegan guest will be comfortable eating Impossible products, even if they are otherwise plant-based.
• Margarine. Most commercial margarine brands contain dairy of one type or another, and others contain a form of vitamin D3 derived from animals. Some brands that are suitable for vegans include “Becel Vegan,” “Earth Balance,” and “Melt”. These are commonly available in grocery stores in Canada and the USA.
• Animal-based broth and stocks such as beef stock, or chicken stock.

For gluten-free diets

• Alcohol. Many alcohols are made using wheat or grains that may be contaminated with gluten-containing grains. If in doubt, get suggestions on types or brands from your guest ahead of time.
• Soy sauce. Soy sauce often has wheat as an ingredient. Consider using a product such as Braggs liquid aminos or tamari. Coconut aminos also work but are much harder to come by. However, they are also suitable for people with soy allergies.
• Commercial broth and bouillons. Again, wheat is a common ingredient in these products. Look for certified gluten-free bouillons, or make your own with herbs and salt.

For Religious Reasons

• Alcohol. Many people avoid alcohol for personal or religious reasons, including alcohol used in cooking, such as wine or beer, and in baking, such as with extracts like vanilla. When preparing food for a group, consider omitting the alcohol, using alcohol-free extracts, or the base ingredient such as vanilla beans instead.

Appendix B: Common Allergens

The following foods account for roughly 90% of all food allergies:

• Eggs
• Dairy
• Peanuts
• Crustaceans and molluscs
• Fish
• Tree nuts

Health Canada keeps a list of priority allergen, which expand on the above list to include:

• Mustard
• Sesame seeds
• Soy
• Sulphites
• Wheat and triticale

When adding ingredient cards to your buffet/potluck dishes, consider listing any of these ingredients in bold to help them stand out at a glance.

Appendix C: Glossary

• Gluten-free: Gluten is a protein found in wheat, barley, rye, and triticale. It can cause allergies or intolerances in some people. As such, people who require a gluten-free diet will avoid foods with the grains mentioned above, and in cases of severe intolerance, will avoid other grains that are not certified as gluten-free.
• Halal: This is an Arabic term used in Islam to indicate something that is “permissible” or “allowed”. In dietary terms, this refers to foods that are fit for Muslim consumption. Except for fish, this also requires a ritual slaughter of a permitted animal for the meat to be considered halal. A non-comprehensive list of items that are harem (the opposite of halal, and thus forbidden) includes pigs, insects, blood, and intoxicants such as alcohol or cannabis.
• Kosher: The Hebrew word “kosher” refers to something that fits or is proper as it relates to Jewish dietary law. Kosher laws are complex and extensive, and it is unlikely that strict kosher meals can be accommodated without external catering from a certified kosher restaurant or caterer.
• Plant-based: Plant-based foods are, as the name implies, composed entirely of plants and fungi (mushrooms and yeast). Plant-based foods are sometimes referred to as “vegan”, though it would be more accurate to say that they are “suitable for vegans”.
• Vegetarian: Someone who does not eat the flesh of animals. The person may not eat other animal-based ingredients such as eggs, dairy, or honey. Sometimes, people prefix “vegetarian” to describe what they do eat. For example:
  - Ovo-Vegetarians will also eat eggs.
  - Lacto-Vegetarians will also eat dairy.
  - Ovo-Lacto Vegetarians will eat both dairy and eggs.
  - Strict Vegetarians will not eat any animal-based ingredients. Note: this term has fallen out of favour and has been replaced with “Plant-based”.
• Vegan: Veganism is an ethical philosophy that recognizes the rights of animals to be free from unnecessary harm and exploitation. As such, vegans do not consume anything from other animals, including food and drink, cosmetics, textiles, or entertainment. Consequently, vegans eat a plant-based diet, avoid events like rodeos and zoos, and eschew any products that have been tested on animals.