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Barnes 3 Internet-Draft Polycom 4 Intended status: Informational July 16, 2013 5 Expires: January 17, 2014 7 Healthy Food and Special Dietary Requirements for IETF meetings 8 draft-barnes-healthy-food-07 10 Abstract 12 This document describes the basic requirements for food for folks 13 that attend IETF meetings require special diets, as well as those 14 that prefer to eat healthy. While, the variety of special diets is 15 quite broad, the most general categories are described. There can be 16 controversy as to what constitutes healthy eating, but there are some 17 common, generally available foods that comprise the basis for healthy 18 eating and special diets. This document provides some 19 recommendations to meeting planners, as well as participants, in 20 handling these requirements. 22 Status of this Memo 24 This Internet-Draft is submitted in full conformance with the 25 provisions of BCP 78 and BCP 79. 27 Internet-Drafts are working documents of the Internet Engineering 28 Task Force (IETF). Note that other groups may also distribute 29 working documents as Internet-Drafts. The list of current Internet- 30 Drafts is at http://datatracker.ietf.org/drafts/current/. 32 Internet-Drafts are draft documents valid for a maximum of six months 33 and may be updated, replaced, or obsoleted by other documents at any 34 time. It is inappropriate to use Internet-Drafts as reference 35 material or to cite them other than as "work in progress." 37 This Internet-Draft will expire on January 17, 2014. 39 Copyright Notice 41 Copyright (c) 2013 IETF Trust and the persons identified as the 42 document authors. All rights reserved. 44 This document is subject to BCP 78 and the IETF Trust's Legal 45 Provisions Relating to IETF Documents 46 (http://trustee.ietf.org/license-info) in effect on the date of 47 publication of this document. Please review these documents 48 carefully, as they describe your rights and restrictions with respect 49 to this document. Code Components extracted from this document must 50 include Simplified BSD License text as described in Section 4.e of 51 the Trust Legal Provisions and are provided without warranty as 52 described in the Simplified BSD License. 54 Table of Contents 56 1. Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 57 2. Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 58 3. Conventions and Terminology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 59 4. Requirements for Special Diets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 60 5. Venue Selection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 61 6. Meeting Coordination . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 62 7. Venue and Food Service Recommendations . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 63 8. Participant Recommendations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 64 9. Specific Food Recommendations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 65 10. Security Considerations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17 66 11. IANA Considerations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17 67 12. Acknowledgements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17 68 13. Informative References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 69 Author's Address . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 71 1. Introduction 73 While much of the success of IETF protocols can be attributed to the 74 availability of large cookies and readily available beer, there are 75 some IETF participants for whom such items aren't compatible with 76 dietary restrictions or the choice to eat a healthy diet. So, while 77 the IETF Tao [RFC6722] describes the IETF as "a place to go for 'many 78 fine lunches and dinners'", for folks with dietary restrictions, 79 meals can require the most planning and be one the most stressful 80 aspect of the meetings. Certainly, the tao clearly states that folks 81 are on their own for lunches and dinners, however, the meeting fee 82 does cover (some of) the cost for the food provided at breakfasts and 83 breaks. The dietary restrictions are quite varied, but fall into 84 general catgories based typically on medical, religious, health and 85 ethical reasons. While [RFC6640] describes some food considerations 86 which are very useful for the average attendee, it intentionally does 87 not address the dietary restrictions described in this document. 89 Most folks are generally understanding of dietary restrictions for 90 medical conditions such as diabetes, celiac disease, and folks with 91 severe allergies to foods such as peanuts that cause immediate 92 anaphylactic and often life threatening reactions. In general, folks 93 respect the special diets required for religious reasons and for 94 folks who have chosen to follow a healthy and vegan/vegetarian diet, 95 which for some folks also has a religious basis. More subtle food 96 allergies and sensitivies, as well as less common medical conditions 97 (e.g., PKU) can sometimes be more difficult to handle, both in terms 98 of the understanding by the general public and food service staff. 99 It is also important to note that these dietary restrictions are not 100 just an inconvenience, but rather they can introduce a barrier to 101 full participation by a subset of the population. The logistics 102 involved in obtaining the appropriate food can interfere with 103 participation in the meeting sessions, as well as informal 104 discussions. 106 2. Overview 108 In general, most folks on restricted diets are very resourceful in 109 terms of researching the meeting venue and determining availability 110 of "safe foods". Folks with these food restrictions typically are 111 proficient at managing these situations provided they have access to 112 information or are able to talk directly with food service staff, in 113 particular the head chef. However, in some cases, this can be more 114 difficult in terms of access to the "safe food" when folks are in 115 foreign countries where their native language (or a language in which 116 they are very fluent) is not widely understood or when the meeting 117 venue is in a more remote geograhic location. Indeed, many of the 118 folks with dietary restrictions arrive at the meetings early enough 119 to scout out locations for finding "safe food". However, at times, 120 the hotels modify their typical food service offerings, such as 121 ordering from menus to just providing a more restricted subset of 122 food choices, to optimize the handling of the large crowds and 123 limited time during the lunch period. Typically, the extra food 124 service areas (carts, etc.) that some meeting venues use to handle 125 the lunch crowds do not offer any food appropriate for several of the 126 dietary restrictions. Meeting venues that are not co-located with 127 the meeting hotel, in particular those that are not located in the 128 city center, typically introduce the most problems in terms of 129 availability of safe food. The cafes that may be located at the 130 venue typically do not have any safe foods available and often the 131 availability of food for participants in the general area of the 132 venue (i.e., close enough so folks can get back to the venue for 133 afternoon meetings) is very limited at these locations. 135 Many folks with dietary restrictions compensate for the lack of 136 readily available safe food by bringing food from home to the 137 meeting. In the case where the meeting is in the home country, there 138 is likely no issue with this practice. However, many meetings 139 require a large number of IETF participants to travel to foreign 140 countries, many of whom prohibit the participants from bringing 141 outside food. Since the food from home often provides a large part 142 of the sustenance for participants with restricted diets, this can 143 introduce a large problem - either the participant goes without or 144 they violate the laws of a particular country and don't declare the 145 food to avoid confiscation. While folks with restrictions due to 146 medical conditions can bring a doctor's letter, there is still a risk 147 of the food being confiscated, since it is highly unlikely that the 148 folks handling the situation are able to make a decision outside the 149 rules with or without the letter. Certainly, participants have a 150 choice, although difficult in cases where the meetings are required 151 for their jobs, as to whether or not they attend a meetings. IETF is 152 an open and inclusive organization, thus facilitating accessiblity to 153 safe foods should be a human factors consideration for the meetings. 154 In addition, laws in some countries (e.g., American Disabilities Act 155 in the U.S.) classify some medical conditions as invisible 156 disabilities (e.g., celiac disease, food allergies, hearing issues) 157 and thus require that accommodations be made for dietary restrictions 158 for medical reasons, in the same way as accommodations are made for 159 other disabilities. The American Disabilities Act applies to non- 160 profit agencies that serve the public. 162 The objective of this document is to summarize some common 163 requirements for all special diets. The focus of this document is to 164 provide information for individuals/organization that choose venues 165 (Section 5), meeting organizers (Section 6), participants (Section 8) 166 and the meeting venue staff (Section 7) to meet some basic 167 requirements for these dietary restrictions. It is recommended that 168 these recommendations be more formally adopted by the first two 169 groups (i.e., those that choose venues and those that organize and 170 run the logistics for the meeting) into their procedures. 172 This document is not intended to provide comprehensive information 173 about any of these dietary restrictions, but rather the restrictions 174 are described in a very general sense, with a few examples, to 175 provide the context for the recommendations in this document. The 176 references include cookbooks that are representative of the special 177 diets discussed in this document. Most of these cookbooks provide a 178 basic overview of particular dietary restriction, lists of safe 179 ingredients, etc. There are a plethora of websites with tons of more 180 information on this topic and specific dietary restrictions. 182 In addition, this document discusses the importance of providing 183 remote attendance for folks whose conditions limit their ability to 184 travel. It is hoped that by increasing the availability of foods for 185 folks with these restrictions could increase the ability for some 186 folks to attend the face to face meetings. 188 While discussion of this document was originally targeted for the 189 ietf-food@employees.org mailing list, it has become increasingly 190 clear that this is something that the community as a whole needs to 191 understand, thus the author is prepared to open the floodgates again, 192 in particular due to the decision to hold yet another meeting in a 193 remote location (IETF-86) in Orlando, without consideration of these 194 requirements. 196 3. Conventions and Terminology 198 This document uses the following terms: 200 Celiac disease: A medical condition which requires a diet entirely 201 free of wheat, rye, barley and most oats. The reaction, as in 202 food allergies, is to the protein in these grains, which is 203 gliaden or most often referred to as gluten. Of particular 204 concern for this dietary restriction is that even the smallest 205 amount of the offending food can trigger the manifestion of the 206 illness. This website provides an excellent overview: 207 208 Food additives: Anything added to food which is typically not 209 natural in origin, such as artificial flavors, artificial colors/ 210 dyes, nitrates/nitrites, sufites/sulfates, mono-sodium glutamate 211 (MSG). This list is not comprehensive and some of these additives 212 (i.e., the latter three) are naturally occurring in foods, 213 however, the levels/volume of the substance is a fraction of what 214 is typically added to foods. 215 Food allergies: Typically refers to a food to which one has a fairly 216 immediate and sometimes anaphylactic reaction. These allergies 217 are typically recognized in that folks produced IgE antibodies to 218 a specific food. There are also foods in which the reaction is 219 delayed and one typically produces IgG antibodies. There are also 220 acute mucousal reactions such as to gluten, in which case IgA 221 antibodies are produced. It is not uncommon for folks with food 222 allergies to also have food intolerances. 223 Food intolerances: Food intolerances can be less severe than food 224 allergies in that the reaction is often delayed and isn't 225 typically life threatening. The reactions cover a very broad 226 range of symptoms such as gastrointestinal reactions (e.g., from 227 dairy or gluten), oral reactions (swelling, mouth ulcers, etc.) 228 flu-like symptoms such as overall muscle aches, headaches, 229 fatigue, sinus congestion, etc. In a small subset of folks, there 230 can be fairly severe neurological impacts producing ADD/ADHD 231 symptoms, severe anger, seizures, etc. 232 Halal: Halal is commonly used to refer to food that is permissible 233 according to Islamic law and is special diet followed by most 234 Muslims. One of the areas of most concern for this diet is the 235 source and processing of meat. In one sense, the Halal 236 requirements are extremely close to Kashrut standards followed by 237 those who consume a Kosher Diet. As with a Kosher diet, pork is 238 never acceptable. 239 Healthy: In the most general sense, healthy refers to a diet that is 240 typically void of processed foods, highly processed sweeteners, 241 food additives, food preservatives, hydrogenated oils, etc. In 242 some cases folks such as those on Vegetarian and Vegan diets would 243 add animal fats to this list. And, obviously, foods with wheat 244 are not considered healthy for celiacs, even foods with natural 245 sweeteners are often unhealthy and of course, any food to which 246 one is allergic is not healthy. So, in this document, the terms 247 is used to refer to a diet based on vegetables and some fruits, 248 along with appropriate proteins, grains, and healthy fats, all of 249 which are suitable for a variety of special diets. 250 Kosher: A Kosher diet is based on specific rules for food source, 251 preparation and handling that are typically followed by many Jews. 252 The strictest rules are around the source and preparation of 253 meats. In particular meat and dairy must not be mixed and in most 254 cases utensils that have been used to prepare non-Kosher foods 255 cannot be used. Pork is considered non-kosher. 256 Phenylketonuria (PKU): A medical condition requiring a low protein 257 diet and avoidance of any food containing phenylalanine (e.g., 258 aspartame). The diet for PKU is often comprised of large amounts 259 of fruits and vegetables in specific portions since the daily 260 intake of protein must be monitored. Grains can be consumed in 261 moderation. The manner in which the food is prepared must be 262 known as ingredients used in cooking and added prior to serving 263 (e.g., butter) need to be identified as they can contribute to the 264 total amount of protein. 265 Special Diet: Special Diet: Refers to any diet for which the source, 266 method of preparation, handling and serving of the food must all 267 be known. In this document, this term is used to refer to any of 268 the dietary restrictions discussed. 269 Vegan: A Vegan diet entirely excludes the use of animals for food 270 (including animal by-products such as cow's milk, butter, eggs, 271 honey, etc.). Many folks adopt a completely vegan lifestyle and 272 eschew the use of animals or animal by-products for any purpose 273 (e.g., no leather shoes). In terms of dietary restrictions, one 274 can view a vegan diet to be a subset of a vegetarian diet. 275 Vegetarian: A vegetarian diet is one which excludes the consumption 276 of meat products, usually including fish. Some vegetarian diets 277 also exclude animal by-products such as egg and dairy. 278 Vegetarians that do consume egg and dairy products are sometimes 279 referred to as lactoOvo-vegetarians and those that consume dairy 280 products, but no eggs, are referred to as lacto-vegetarians. 282 4. Requirements for Special Diets 284 While there is no strict definition as to what qualifies as a 285 "healthy" diet, there are a variety of diets that individuals choose 286 based upon a desire to maintain good health and prevent disease as 287 well as to treat specific diseases. 289 Allergies are a key reason that some folks must follow a specific 290 diet. In terms of the number of folks that require special diets, it 291 is estimated that anywhere from 3% to 7% of the population has food 292 allergies. The top eight allergens are: milk (cow), eggs, peanuts, 293 tree nuts (such as almonds, cashews, walnuts), fish (such as bass, 294 cod, flounder), shellfish (such as crab, lobster, shrimp), soy and 295 wheat. It should be noted that the allergic reactions are to the 296 protein found in the food. For example, an allergy to milk is most 297 often due to casein, which is the most common protein found in cow's 298 milk. Thus, any other food product that also contains casein (e.g., 299 butter and cheese) can also cause an allergic reaction. While 300 intolerances to specific foods may not elicit a true allergic 301 reaction, individuals with food intolerances typcially must also 302 avoid the offending food. For example, some individuals are lactose 303 intolerant and thus they also cannot consume cow's milk as described 304 on the following website: 305 . 307 It's estimated that about 5 percent of the U.S. population is 308 vegetarian and about 0.2 percent of the U.S. Population being vegan. 309 Twenty-five percent of the population has the genetic predisposition 310 to develop celiac disease. It is estimated that as little as 0.3 311 percent of the individuals with celiac disease have been diagnosed. 312 Both the U.S. and Europe are actively working to educate the medical 313 community on the high prevalence of undiagnosed celiac. In some 314 countries, the rate of diagnosis has doubled in recent years. This 315 trend is expected to continue, thus as time goes by the need for food 316 accommodating this diet will increase. As of 2009, about 15% of the 317 U.S. Population were following a gluten-free diet. Western Europeans 318 and those of European descent experience the highest incidence of 319 Celiac disease. Although, it is not specific to those ethnic groups 320 and has been found in all populations around the world. 322 Dietary restrictions for religious reasons include those who follow 323 Halal, Kosher and some folks that follow Vegan/Vegetarian diets. 324 Halal is commonly used to refer to food that is permissible according 325 to Islamic law and is special diet followed by most Muslims. One of 326 the areas of most concern for this diet is the source and processing 327 of meat. In one sense, the Halal requirements are extremely close to 328 Kashrut standards followed by those who consume a Kosher Diet. As 329 with a Kosher diet, pork is never acceptable for a Halal diet. Fish 330 with scales are considered both Halal and Kosher. Shell fish are 331 controversial and are a common allergen, thus recommended to be 332 avoided as part of planning for foods to accommodate a broad range of 333 dietary restrictions. 335 Dietary restrictions due to medical conditions impose very stringent 336 requirements on the food, in particular for allergies and food 337 intolerances. Celiac disease is a good example of a medical 338 condition that requires extreme care in the preparation and handling 339 of the food. In many cases, this requires that the food is not 340 processed or prepared anywhere near those grains. For example, it 341 would not be appropriate to use the utensils, bowls or pots/pans that 342 have been used to prepare foods containing those grains without 343 thoroughly cleaning and only metal or glass should be used since 344 trace amounts of the grains can attach to plastics and wood. For 345 example, this means that neither plastic nor wood cutting boards that 346 have been used for these grains can be used. Nor, can the foods be 347 prepared in the same area or even near an area where the grains are 348 being used for food preparation. In general, this requires 349 designating ahead of time a specific area to be used for the 350 preparation of these foods and ensuring that the food preparer and 351 anyone that handles or serves the food uses appropriate methods to 352 avoid cross contamination. In terms of serving the food, providing 353 plastic utensils and dishes, while not environmentally friendly, 354 helps to avoid one potential area of cross contamination for most of 355 the diets. 357 In general, the same rules that are required for handling food for 358 medically restricted diets applies to all other special diets in 359 terms of avoiding cross contamination. Meat products require special 360 consideration in ensuring that food suitable for vegetarians/vegans 361 is not contaminated, that appropriate meat products are provided for 362 folks on Kosher/Halal diets and that the meat products are 363 unprocessed and thus suitable for most allergy/intolerance special 364 diets, with the obvious exception that folks that are allergic to 365 fish can't eat fish, etc.. 367 There are laws in many countries and jurisdictions (e.g.,U.S., E.U.) 368 that make it illegal to mislabel foods that are Halal or Kosher. At 369 this time, food manufacturers in many jusisdictions (e.g.,U.S., U.K, 370 E.U.) must include all ingredients on the labels of any packaged food 371 product. The following are examples of the requirements for such: 372 <:http://food.gov.uk:80/foodlabelling/>, , 374 . Many 375 products also contain designations as to whether the product is 376 vegetarian or vegan, however, the standards for these labels are not 377 as clearly specified or restricted. Manufacturers are required to 378 specifically label the food if it contains any of the top 8 379 allergens. 381 In terms of detailed information available to food service 382 establishments in order to accommodate these special diets, the 383 (U.S.) National Restaurant Association [NRA] has produced a 384 comprehensive guide for food service establishments to ensure that 385 they appropriately handle food specifically for allergies and 386 intolerance, but could be used to avoid cross contamination and 387 ensure that only "safe" foods are served. 389 The fundamental requirements for the provision of food to accommodate 390 special diets consists of the following: 392 1. The meetings should be held in a location where markets that sell 393 foods for special diets are conveniently located. 394 2. The right food should be accessible to the participants at the 395 meeting venue. 396 3. Food that is served at the venue should be prepared and served by 397 appropriate methods as described above. 398 4. The meeting coordination and venue staff should be made aware of 399 participants requiring such food and should be willing to 400 accommodate such requirements. 402 The subsequent sections of this document describe the 403 responsibilities of the following organizations/individuals in 404 meeting these requirements: 406 o The IETF individuals involved in selection and negotiation of the 407 meeting venue as described in Section 5. In general, this is the 408 responsibility of the IETF Administrative Oversight Committee 409 (IAOC), but applies to anyone involved in this role. 410 o The IETF organization and individuals that handle the coordination 411 of the meetings such as the meeting registrations and other 412 logistics, as well, coordination for the provisions at the meeting 413 venue, as described in Section 6. In general, these are the 414 responsibilities of the IETF secretariat, but apply to anyone 415 responsibile for this role. 416 o The venue staff that are responsible for providing services during 417 the meeting as described in Section 7. 418 o The attendees with specific dietary restrictions and requirements 419 as described in Section 8. 421 5. Venue Selection 423 Accommodating the requirements for special diets starts with the 424 selection of the venue. The following describes some criteria and 425 suggestions that can significantly impact the availability of foods 426 for special diets relative to the venue. It is recommended that 427 these critera and suggestions be considered as part of the evaluation 428 and negotiation process in the selection of a venue. Other than the 429 last criteria, if a venue cannot satisfy these criteria, then the 430 venue should be deemed unsuitable for an IETF meeting. 432 1. Accessiblity to "healthy" food: Meetings that are located in the 433 city center of large metropolitan areas significantly increase 434 the accessibility to foods for special diets. Food markets are 435 generally within walking distance and the number of restaurant 436 options improve the potential for a healthy meal. In addition, 437 the opening hours for food markets don't entirely overlap with 438 meeting times, thus allowing the attendee to find healthy/safe 439 food without having to miss a meeting (which is the primary 440 objective in attending the meetings for most attendees). 441 2. Onsite accommodations: While the location of the meeting 442 dramatically impacts the availability of food near the meeting 443 venue, the logistics of the meetings do require the accessibility 444 to healthy/safe food during the meetings. The folks that 445 negotiate the contract should ensure that the venue is willing 446 and able to make accommodations for basic requirements in 447 Section 4. Section 7 outlines specific requirements for the 448 venue and food service staff that provides useful input into this 449 requirement. Information as to the number of attendees for whom 450 the accommodations are required can be based on the information 451 available from previous meetings, with updated information 452 provided once the majority of the registrations for the meeting 453 have been completed. In addition, folks that negotiate the 454 contract should ensure that attendees are allowed to bring in 455 outside food and beverage. This is a necessity in the case that 456 the venue fails to provide adequate food onsite. More 457 importantly, it is a medical necessity for some folks to always 458 have specific types of food and drink readily available (e.g., 459 for diabetics or others with blood sugar issues). 460 3. Repeat venues: Meetings that are located where previous meetings 461 have been held can greatly faciliate (or dramatically inhibit) 462 the accessiblity to safe/healthy foods. The attendees from 463 previous meeting (s) already have the information on 464 accessibility to the healthy/safe foods which should influence 465 venue selection. If the post-meeting surveys include questions 466 as to the availability of foods for these specific diets at the 467 venue, the folks that select the venue know a priori whether the 468 venue is suitable in this respect. For cases of first time 469 attendees for a specific location, relevant information can be 470 gathered from attendees that have previously visited the city. 472 6. Meeting Coordination 474 IETF meeting coordination staff are typically pro-active in meeting 475 the needs of folks with special dietary restrictions when they've 476 been made aware. The meeting registration form includes a field for 477 participants to indicate dietary restrictions. Accommodations 478 including the following have been provided: 480 o At one venue that served many cookies with nuts, the meeting staff 481 was able to ask the food service staff at the meeting venue to 482 have some nut free cookies available and labeled as such. 483 o The staff are very accommodating in ensuring special meals are 484 provided to participants that attend meetings where meals are 485 provided in cases where they have been made aware (e.g., WG chairs 486 lunch). 487 o The availability of safe/healthy foods at the breaks has 488 increased. For example, frozen fruit bars have been available at 489 the traditional Thursday ice cream social and veggies have been 490 available at some of the afternoon breaks. 492 The following summarizes the recommendations for special diets that 493 meeting planners should be able to accommodate with some pre- 494 planning, and as noted above have already been pro-active in 495 accommodating: 497 1. Ensuring that specific foods for special diets is available at 498 the IETF meeting hotel restaurants, along with information on the 499 accessiblity to such in nearby markets/restaurants. These 500 accommodations should be available starting on the Friday nite 501 prior to the meeting week, since some folks arrive early for pre- 502 meetings and the tools session. 503 2. Determining special dietary needs of participants during 504 registration and communicating any additional requirements to the 505 venue staff and to the meeting hosts that are sponsoring the 506 Sunday evening reception and social event who may be directly 507 planning and coordinating the food for those events. 508 3. Providing information about the provisions for special diets in 509 the participants IETF registration packet and on the IETF meeting 510 attendee mailing list. 511 4. During the meeting, responding to the concerns raised by 512 participants in terms of the problems encountered. In general, 513 this requires serving as a facilitator between the participant 514 and the venue staff. It should be noted, that in general this 515 situation intervention should only be required in cases where the 516 participant has done their part with regards to the necessary 517 accommodations for their special diet per Section 8. 519 7. Venue and Food Service Recommendations 521 Since IETF meetings are typically held at full service venues, 522 accommodating special diets is a service that can typically be 523 provided, in particular with advance notice that allows the venue to 524 properly plan. Planning is required to ensure that the basic 525 requirements identified in Section 4 can be satisfied. 527 The following summarizes the recommendations for special diets that 528 the venue and food service staff should be able to accommodate with 529 some pre-planning and meet all the requirements. 531 1. Agreement with meeting planners during the contract negotiation 532 phase that they can at least meet the basic requirements in 533 Section 4. 534 2. Providing information about the provisions for special diets on 535 check-in and readily available at all food service locations 536 within the venue. 537 3. Ensuring that specific foods for special diets is purchased in 538 time to meet the dietary requirements starting on the Friday 539 night prior to the meeting week, since some folks arrive early 540 for pre-meetings and tools session. 541 4. Training chefs if necessary to ensure food for special diets is 542 properly prepared. Noting, that the majority of chefs receive 543 training to accommodate special diets. There is a food service 544 training guide published by the National Restaurant Association 545 (the other NRA) [NRA] that provides explicit details for 546 restaurants in accommodating food allergies that applies 547 generally to other dietary restrictions. 548 5. Training waitstaff on the need to clearly document the special 549 dietary requirements when food is ordered. 550 6. Training waitstaff to effectively communicate with the food 551 preparers and servers (which are not always the waitstaff in some 552 food service locations) to ensure that the preparation, handling 553 and serving of the food for the specific dietary restriction is 554 understood. 555 7. During the meeting, ensuring food that is available at evening 556 reception, breakfast and snacks is arranged to avoid cross- 557 contamination. Items of particular concern are ensuring that 558 products with nuts are clearly labeled and not co-mingled with 559 nut-free products, meat products are separate from dairy 560 products, wheat products (e.g., bread, bagels, muffins, etc.) are 561 separated from safe food items such as fruit and ideally a list 562 of ingredients is readily available for any prepared foods. 563 8. Allowing outside food and beverage. While all the items listed 564 above dramatically increase the accessibility to safe food, there 565 will still be times that an attendee cannot ascertain whether 566 certain foods are safe and thus cannot be consumed. In addition, 567 certain medical conditions require that attendees always have 568 specific types of food and beverages on hand (e.g., diabetics and 569 others with blood sugar issues). 571 While this list might seem quite onerous, a similar approach is used 572 by a variety of organizations including public schools, overnight 573 summer camps for kids, airlines that still provide meals for 574 international flights and a broad range of other conferences from 575 small to large. 577 8. Participant Recommendations 579 The following summarizes the recommendations for special diets for 580 which the participant is responsible. These recommendations allow 581 the individual to pro-actively ensure that adequate food is readily 582 available during the meeting, for lunch in particular: 584 1. Ensuring that the accommodations booked for the meeting can 585 accommodate any food or medication which requires special 586 handling such as refrigeration (e.g., insulin for diabetics and 587 any other supplements, medications or foods which are important 588 for other special diets). Many hotels will provide a 589 refrigerator in the room. Some hotels have microwaves in the 590 rooms or in common areas. In many cases, it can be a really good 591 idea to stay at a hotel near the venue, where food preparation 592 items and refrigerators are standard. Many of the major chains 593 have residence style hotels and one can often find corporate 594 apartments for rent in major cities. For example, there was a 595 residence type hotel right next to the meeting venue in 596 Philadelphia. The room rate was identical. There were also two 597 Whole Foods markets within walking distance. Thus, for folks on 598 special diets, we really had an optimal setup. Often, the 599 residence/suite style hotels will also do shopping for you (with 600 a list provided in the room). 601 2. Bringing special dietary items (including medications, etc.) that 602 are typically not generally available, especially in airports or 603 when arriving off hours in an unfamilar location, in carry on 604 luggage. It is often very, very helpful (and sometimes 605 necessary) to have a letter from your healthcare provider 606 documenting the need to travel with these items. Also, this will 607 typically allow you to go through security with a freezie pack in 608 a lunch cooler. 609 3. Indicating the dietary restriction when registering for the IETF 610 meeting. 611 4. Monitoring the IETF "food" mailing list for information as to 612 availability of specific special diet foods, including food 613 markets, nearby food service establishments, as well as at the 614 venue. 615 5. Gathering the available special diet information upon arriving at 616 the venue. 617 6. Sharing information on the IETF "food" or IETF meeting specific 618 mailing list as to local food service establishments and markets 619 near the venue during the meeting. 620 7. Communicating effectively with the food service personnel your 621 specific dietary needs. While the expectation is that the venue 622 and meeting planners have done their job, ensuring that one gets 623 the right food requires effective communication every step of the 624 way. Thus, the same approach that one uses elsewhere should also 625 be used at the meetings. One can never assume that everything 626 has been taken care of by someone else. And, as with anything 627 that involves many people doing the right thing, there is always 628 room for human error. A very effective tool for communicating 629 this information are food allergy cards available on several 630 websites, some of which allow you to enter all your restrictions 631 and print them yourself. Others are pre-printed and purchased 632 from the vendor. These cards can be given to the food service 633 staff. This is very helpful for staff that are unfamiliar with 634 handling special dietary requests, as oftentimes these cards 635 trigger a visit from the chef. In virtually all cases a 636 discussion with the chef on your dietary requirements results in 637 the precise food that you have require. 638 8. Thanking the folks that do take the effort during the meeting to 639 accommodate your special dietary needs and ensuring that the food 640 service staff are adequately tipped in locales for which this is 641 a custom. 643 9. Specific Food Recommendations 645 While specific foods for the special diets can be quite diverse and 646 sometimes contradictory (e.g., meat for vegans/vegetarians, seitan 647 for celiacs, etc.), there are also sufficient readily available foods 648 that can meet the requirements of the majority of the special diets. 649 There are a plethora of recipes in cookbooks and on websites that 650 address all these various diets, including many that combine the 651 diets, such as [kosher-veg] and [cornucopia]. Stores such as Whole 652 Foods, with locations in virtually all major U.S. cities, as well as 653 in the U.K., typically handle this in an exceptional manner, as well, 654 as they often have a salad bar section that consists of very plain 655 and clearly labeled foods. Most Whole Foods stores also have lists 656 of specific foods in the store that are safe for a variety of special 657 diets. Many airlines that provide special meals typically use the 658 same basic meal to accommodate all special diets, in many cases just 659 substituting an alternative protein such as the ubiquitous portobello 660 mushroom for the meat to accommodate a vegetarian/vegan diet. Also, 661 many restaurants do have a subset of their menu that can typically 662 accommodate special diets and in many cases the menus either label 663 the items as such or include a note indicating that dishes can be 664 prepared to accommodate dietary restrictions. 666 The following summarizes some basic foods that can accommodate the 667 majority of special diets that the venue coordinator and food service 668 staff should be able to accommodate with little pre-planning since 669 they are the foods that provide the basis for most healthy diets. In 670 addition, almost all of these items require very little preparation, 671 thus the potential for cross-contamination is fairly low by observing 672 the basics of a clean prep area and clean utensils, etc. Also, many 673 of these items can be delivered by the food service distributors 674 ready for serving (e.g., salads and even some meats). Virtually all 675 the foods can be served cold, as most folks find a cold meal 676 acceptable for breakfast and lunch since dinners at IETF meetings 677 tend to be larger, hot meals: 679 o A variety of fresh fruits available at breakfast, lunch and for 680 breaks, when cookies, etc. are served. The fruit must be kept 681 separate from the cookies, etc. to avoid cross-contamination. 682 o A variety of fresh vegetables, either served raw or steamed and 683 served plain, available at lunch either on a buffet or on the 684 menu. 685 o At least two greens (without preservatives) for a salad base 686 available at lunch and dinner - e.g., Romaine and spinach - served 687 separately as some folks cannot tolerate the oxalates in fresh 688 spinach. 690 o Lean proteins such as beans, steamed fish and steamed, grilled or 691 deli meats such as chicken or beef, with at least one kosher 692 option and ensuring that the meats are unseasoned and without 693 fillers. Note, that the meats can be served cold, thus prepared 694 the night before and actually this may be very economical for the 695 food service establishment where fresh foods are typically more 696 desireable - e.g., fish spoils most quickly, thus cooking what's 697 left from the dinner the night before is economical and efficient. 698 For some folks, these foods are eaten for both breakfast and 699 lunch. 700 o Also, to accommodate folks that can handle various spices and 701 seasonings with their food, a range of condiments such as the 702 basic salt and pepper, ketchup, mustard, mayonnaise and Tabasco 703 sauce, as well as minimal salad dressings such as vinegar and oil. 704 These items are readily available at virtually any food service 705 establishment. 706 o Within the food preparation environment for these foods and in the 707 case of buffets, avoiding dairy altogether is recommended as it is 708 a common allergen, not eaten by vegans, has special rules for a 709 Kosher/Halal diet, 50 percent of celiacs cannot tolerate dairy and 710 the most health conscious of people typically recognize that cow's 711 milk, pastuerized in particular, is not a particularly healthy 712 food. 714 The following food options would be nice to have available, but may 715 require some pre-planning depending upon the venue, but in general 716 can be purchased/prepared ahead of time, thus should not be 717 particularly difficult to support: 719 o Alternative grains such as Quinoa - can be served as a hot 720 breakfast cereal or served as a side dish as an alternative to 721 rice or cracked wheat salad (Tabbouleh) - the latter could be made 722 using leftovers from breakfast. In the case of breakfast, side 723 options such as maple syrup and dried fruits like raisins can be 724 used to sweeten (in the same manner as these items are served with 725 oatmeal). 726 o Rice crackers as an alternative to wheat based grain products. 727 o Hummus as a protein alternative for breakfast and lunch. Hummus 728 keeps quite well, thus the food service staff would only need to 729 prepare a large enough batch to last the week. 730 o Sprouted beans as a salad/protein alternative for breakfast and 731 lunch. 732 o Soups that would accommodate all diets such as non-dairy Squash or 733 vegan lentil soup. As with the meats, this soup could be made 734 with leftovers served from the previous evening. 735 o Nuts and seeds (e.g., pumpkin, sunflower, etc.), including nut 736 butters, as alternative protein sources for folks. These are 737 suitable for all meals and snacks. 739 o Snack bars as an alternative to the cookie option at breaks. 740 There is a wide range of healthy snack bars available, with many 741 being either free of all allergens, vegan and kosher or at least 742 accommodating 2 of the 3 main restrictions. For example, bars 743 with honey are not vegan, but may be suitable for all the other 744 special diets. Many of the manufacturers of these snack bars will 745 provide a certain number to non-profit organizations for their 746 events for marketing and as a public service. 748 10. Security Considerations 750 This document neither defines nor extends any Internet protocol, thus 751 there are no particular security considerations. One could consider 752 the information as to which participant requires a special diet to 753 require some level of privacy, but in general, this isn't considered 754 particularly private for most folks. As noted in Section 8, one can 755 never assume that the food offerings are safe and the individual 756 should always confirm such. 758 11. IANA Considerations 760 This document requires no IANA registrations. 762 12. Acknowledgements 764 The authors appreciate the feedback from the individuals who 765 considered the discussion on the IETF-72 attendee list to be 766 constructive and provided good input. In addition, we also 767 appreciate the feedback from folks that considered this topic to be 768 only of concern for a small subset of participants and an onerous 769 task and expectation for consideration by both meeting planners and 770 the meeting venue. Feedback from these folks provided the motivation 771 for this document. 773 The author appreciates the support from Dan Wing in setting up the 774 ietf-food mailing list. The list has been very helpful in 775 identifying restaurants, markets, etc. and allowing folks with 776 similar food interests to meet and dine together at recent meetings. 778 The author appreciates the comments and feedback from Dan Romascanu, 779 Teemu Huovila, Ran Atkinson, Fred Baker, SM, Joel Jaegli, John 780 Klensin and Melinda Shore. This document was provided to Ole 781 Jacobsson (as an IAOC member) as input to the meeting hosts (Kaori 782 Maeda and Akira Kato) for planning purposes for IETF-76 in Hiroshima. 784 13. Informative References 786 [RFC6722] Hoffman, P., "Publishing the "Tao of the IETF" as a Web 787 Page", RFC 6722, August 2012. 789 [RFC6640] George, W., "IETF Meeting Attendees' Frequently Asked 790 (Travel) Questions", RFC 6640, June 2012. 792 [NRA] Food Allergy and Anaphylaxis Network, "Welcoming Guests 793 with Food Allergies", 2008. 795 [kosher-veg] 796 Marks, G., "Olive Trees and Honey: A Treasury of 797 Vegetarian Recipes from Jewish Communities Around the 798 World", November 2004. 800 [cornucopia] 801 Heffernan, E., "Cornucopia at Home", October 2008. 803 [GFgourmet] 804 Hagman, B., "The Gluten-free Gourmet Cooks Fast and 805 Healthy", June 2000. 807 Author's Address 809 Mary Barnes 810 Polycom 811 TX 812 US 814 Email: mary.ietf.barnes@gmail.com