<<Disclaimer: Verify this information before applying it to your situation.>>

My celiac son attended a day care at a hospital for several years. The
hospital cafeteria provided all meals and snacks for the children. No
outside food was supposed to be brought in (weird state licensing laws). I
met numerous times with the hospital dietitians, nutritional services
staff, and day care staff. For a year I was (ignorantly) delighted with him
getting hot meals every day (that I didn't have to cook).

However, I had a rude awakening. I finally discovered that these "hot
meals" consisted of grilled chicken breast, baked potato, and canned
fruit...EVERY day! I was horrified. At that time my son was too young to
tell me; the teacher mentioned one day that he didn't seem to be interested
in eating any more (no wonder!). So we had more meetings in which I began
to refer to CD as a "disability." They came up with sample menus with more
variety and were going to special order some food just for him.

The next few months were nightmarish. It turned out that instead of serving
him roast turkey (which was GF) as we agreed, they were serving him
deli-type processed turkey, which was not GF; instead of fixing him some
french fries in a separate skillet, they sent him ones fried in the same
oil as breaded products, etc, etc. I found these things out from a cook
(who had never been involved in any meetings); the dietitians and teachers
were completely oblivious. I now have a sincere distrust of any
institutional cafeteria being able to provide consistent GF meals on a
daily basis.

While CD may not actually be explicitly covered by the Americans with
Disabilities Act, being stubborn about your child's "right to lunch" in
some form can help. Try suggesting that your child be able to keep a lunch
refrigerated in the teachers' lounge fridge & reheat it (or have a teacher
or lunchroom worker reheat it) in the teachers' lounge microwave or one in
the cafeteria's kitchen. If they insist that your child could eat
sandwiches every day, bring in some bread and have them try it (you'd be
surprised how quickly they change their minds). You may also be able to
talk the teacher or the school office into storing snacks and treats for
your child to be brought out for special occasions.

Personally, I wouldn't rely on a school cafeteria in a million years. But
there are feasible alternatives!

Tami

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Tami Powell
Michigan State University
[log in to unmask]
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~