$JES 983 Being Jain In College An Experiential Guide 2nd Edition

Author(s): Sonali Vakharia
Publisher: JAINA Education Committee

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FOOD AVAILABILITY
02 - Food Availability
Throughout high school, we all had different dietary preferences: vegetarian, vegan, no root vegetables, etc. Sticking to this was not terribly difficult because we ate food from home and at local restaurants where we knew what we could or could not eat.
A college cafeteria takes some adjustment, but you can definitely make it work! When I started college, not only did I not eat eggs, but I was also not eating root vegetables. At my small, out-of-state college (smaller than my high school), there was not much variety of food available in the cafeteria. It was difficult to leave campus to go to a grocery store or restaurant due to safety issues on public transportation and not having a car. Nevertheless, I survived!
Most of you will probably have larger and safer campuses with more food and transportation options than I ever had. If you do have a difficult time finding food options, there are several actions you can take to maintain your dietary preferences and avoid the dreaded "Freshman 15" (the 15 pounds magically gained when you leave home for the first time).
1. Locate All Your Food Options First, understand what your dining options are. Where are all the different eating areas, whether cafeterias, restaurants, or take-out places? Get a lay of the land.
2. Talk with Cafeteria Staff and Get Creative Second, talk to a supervisor in the cafeteria. Countless friends of mine have done this successfully when options were limited, so there's no need to feel embarrassed to ask. The food service companies are there to serve you. Writing comments on feedback cards is not enough. You have to talk face-to-face with management and get them to understand your needs. Use statistics to your advantage, because food service companies have to think about the college population as a whole in addition to individual needs. For example, state that implementing more vegan options will benefit all vegetarians plus those who are lactose-intolerant. Ask them to provide you with a list of ingredients for certain foods
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BEING JAIN IN COLLEGE