RYE BROOK, N.Y., July 21, 2025—The release of CulinArt’s Allergy Aware Bootcamp training video demonstrates a more personal delivery of allergy awareness training as school foodservice directors eye fall openings that are just about a month away.

For many directors, managers and their staffs, summer camps are in full swing and the July heat is betraying any sense of a change in seasons. Nonetheless, school will be back in session before we know it, and the new video, available on YouTube, offers a great opportunity to double-down on knowledge of allergens and how to keep reactions at bay.

Starring in the video are CulinArt associates at Tower Hill School, in Wilmington, Del., where Director of Wellness and Nutrition Stephanie Dorfman, MS, RDN, led an Allergy Aware Bootcamp earlier this year. Rob Harris, director of dining services at Tower Hill, comments on the value of the Bootcamp, as do Dorfman, Regional Dietitian Janelle Lacey, RD, LDN, and District Manager Joe Ginder.

The video takes the effectiveness of CulinArt’s allergy awareness training, which already exists and takes place online, to the next level. “We created the Allergy Aware Bootcamp training to bring an awareness, in person, to our staff,” Dorfman says in opening the video. “We thought that the online training has so much information, but we wanted to be able to express it in a more interactive and fun way, with our staff members, to one, learn more about them, and [two], to incorporate more fun activities to put people in the shoes of students with food allergies.”

CulinArt’s team of dietitians, including one national director and 10 regional directors, began piloting the Bootcamps late last year. In just a few weeks, they will fan out across the country with the goal of conducting sessions at each CulinArt account at least once a year in person. This will complement the virtual FARE Food Allergies and Celiac Disease training that is mandatory for all associates. In this manner, all accounts will receive twice-yearly allergy training that keeps pace with evolving allergy needs, allergen research, and on-site staff and account requirements.

The training aims for “hyperawareness” among staff members rather than mere knowledge of common allergens and avoidance techniques. “CulinArt is committed to making every guest’s dining experience an exceptional one, where they feel safe and comfortable eating with us,” Dorfman adds. “Food allergies, celiac disease, and other dietary needs are more prevalent now than ever before. They are serious and must be handled with care in all locations. This commitment has led us to create our enhanced, in-person Allergy Awareness Bootcamp.”

The training takes all CulinArt team members—chefs, managers, and front-line associates—through a series of engaging food allergy–related activities and learning experiences, creating a more relatable level of awareness of what it is like to live with a life-threatening food allergy. Activities include: 

• Top 9 Allergen Scavenger Hunt: CulinArt team members are assigned an allergen and provided a sample CulinArt menu. The activity requires them to act as if they are allergic to that allergen and review the menu, coming up with questions about menu items, ingredient usage, food preparation, and potential for cross contact that they would want to ask CulinArt’s Ingredient Expert before choosing what to eat. “This activity creates thought-provoking discussions between team members and puts them in the shoes of students and guests with food allergies,” Dorfman explains, “and gives them a sense of how nerve-wracking it can be to choose something safe to eat.”
• Read that Label: CulinArt team members are provided with a variety of food labels, which they scrutinize to determine ingredient lists and whether any of the Top 9 allergens are present. “We also highlight the important fact that gluten is not required to be called out on the ingredient list,” Dorfman adds, “that students and guests may have a food allergy that is not part of the Top 9 allergens—and the necessity to read through every ingredient.”  
• Case Studies: CulinArt team members are provided with a series of case studies and review what went wrong and how to prevent it from happening in the future at their location.  
• Allergen Action Plan and SWOT Analysis: CulinArt team members work together to review their specific strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats, and come up with an action plan to enhance their own allergy awareness at their location.  

Once the in-person training is complete, that location is provided with their “I’m Allergy Aware” kit, which includes “I’m Allergy Aware” buttons for all team members to wear, as well as posters to place throughout the cafe informing students that all team members have been trained.