Posted: April 16th, 2011 - 11:52am by Doug Powell

One of the cornerstones of ethics and social responsibility, but one that is rarely discussed, is don’t make people barf.

With an Alanis Morissette level of ironical irony, a number of Indiana State University students and employees reported having flu-like symptoms after consuming food they ate at the April 4 Ethics and Social Responsibility Conference at ISU.

ISU food service providers are denying that contaminated food is to blame.

Conference attendees were served box lunches of cold cut sandwiches, a fruit cup, a pickle and a bag of potato chips.

The Indiana Statesman contacted one of the event's Scott College of Business student organizers who was instructed not to speak on the record about reports of illness linked to the conference.

But College of Business Associate Dean Bruce McLaren said he received reports on April 5 of attendees having become ill following the conference. McLaren said he knew of multiple students and faculty who became ill. After receiving those reports, he notified Sodexo, he said.

According to a statement issued April 12 by Sodexo public relations director Monica Zimmer, "Sodexo was notified about alleged foodborne illness at Indiana State University. We have reviewed our procedures and are confident they are in line with our stringent food safety standards."

"The health department completed three inspections in the Hulman Memorial Student Union this week and found no violations. In addition, Sodexo received a food safety score of 99% during a recent inspection by a third-party auditor."