First Narayever Congregation Food Allergy Policy

Objectives

The objective of the policy is to retain the open kitchen and not prohibit any kosher food from being brought onto the premises while at the same time making it easier from those suffering from allergies that could result in an anaphylactic reaction to better assess their risk in a general way and on specific occasions, while raising an awareness of the problem.

Policy

First Narayever Congregation's policy regarding food allergy is:

• The First Narayever Congregation commits only to maintaining a kosher kitchen with respect to the type of food and drink that we serve at our communal meals at our location on Brunswick Avenue.
• The First Narayever Congregation does not ban any kosher food from being served or prepared on its premises.
• Every attempt will be made to warn anyone who might suffer an anaphylactic reaction that First Narayever Congregation does not attempt to restrict any kosher substances from the premises, meaning that allergens that could trigger an anaphylactic reaction could be present on the premises and that adults and children who attend services/functions at our synagogue and eat at our synagogue are completely responsible for any health concerns they may have with respect to food and drink. Those warnings may be made by way of signage in the basement, notices on our websites, on pew cards and/or in the weekly notices placed on the pews and in the shul bulletin.
• Our website and policies regarding bringing food into the shul will remind those bringing food onto the premises that people attending the shul may have food allergies that could result in an anaphylactic reaction and the shul asks those people to be sensitive to the needs of those suffering such allergies.
• Anyone bringing in food must be leave a contact name and number with the shul office that can be contacted to advise on the ingredients that will be brought into the shul so that someone attending the shul can determine in advance if they will have a health concern attending the service or the Kiddush afterwards.
• Any person who regularly prepares food for the shul will be made aware of the allergens of the congregants that have been made known to the shul office, on the understanding that the person preparing the food will not be prohibited from using that item.
• That while the shul will try to be aware of nut allergies with respect to the children's Kiddush and other food being brought in to the shul, the shul cannot guarantee that we are nut free.

This policy will be put into effect on February 1, 2009.

Rationale

In developing this policy the following considerations were taken into account:

• The desire to have an open kitchen. At this time we want to encourage members to participate in providing for Kiddush. To do this we try and give members as much freedom in participating as possible including making a financial contribution, hiring a kosher caterer of their choice and making their own Kiddush. In order to permit this flexibility many people have access to the kitchen. Conversely there is no one caterer, as is the case in many shuls that control what happens in the shul.
• The standards maintained by other shuls. Since we do not have a designated caterer we should not be comparing ourselves to those shuls that have a single designated caterer since they have much control over their kitchens. A not very exhaustive search found only one shul that had a specific nut free policy, Temple Israel in London, Ontario. There are, however, nut free policies for schools within shuls (e.g. Both PPDJDS and USDS have a nut free policy).
• Any legal requirements. There are now several jurisdictions that require any place that serves food to have a nut free policy (e.g. most provinces in Australia and New York), however there does not appear to be a law in Ontario. Even though there may be no law requiring a prohibition on known allergens that could cause an anaphylactic response, if there was such a response, the shul could be open to a civil law suit resulting from the adverse reaction. From a risk point of view the shul may very well be better off publicly stating that it does not have a policy as opposed to having a policy and not strictly enforcing the policy.
• If a ban were imposed, how extensive should it be. There is also a concern that if the shul bans some allergens, must it then ban all allergens that could cause an anaphylactic reaction. This causes a number of concerns including identifying the allergens. Do we open the shul up to unintended exposure such as not having proper air circulation or humidity in the air when dealing with someone who has exercise-induced asthma that could become an anaphylactic reaction in some circumstance and the asthma is triggered by walking to shul. Additionally, once there is a ban on some allergens, would we then also ban other substances that cause an extremely uncomfortable reaction (such as some scents.)
• What would the cost of enforcing a ban on some allergens be in terms of cash to monitor and loss of freedom.
• The concern that harm could come to a member or a guest.
• The desire to accommodate as many people as possible.

This policy was adopted by the board on Nov 30, 2008. Updated Feb 3 to correct typographic errors.