Serving sizes

For different cultures, meals differ, requiring larger plates to hold multiple accompaniments. Are there allowances by IWBI to address these cultural differences?

No, the 507 cm² plate area should be acceptable for a wide range of cuisine types. Furthermore, occupants are not limited to a single plate/bowl. Hence a lunch tray which provides space for a large plate and smaller bowls is acceptable.

My project is not located in the United States. How does IWBI determine what a main course is, keeping in mind the different interpretations by countries other than the United States?

The definition of a main dish, or entrée, will change based on the local conditions of the project. The intent of this feature is to provide employees the choice to select lower calorie meals.

My project does not sell or provide food and beverages on a daily basis. Are the Nourishment precondition features applicable?

If a project does not sell or provide food and beverages on a daily basis, it is exempt from most Nourishment preconditions. However, Features 41 and 45 may be applicable to your project.

In our Core and Shell project, we will have both office tenants and retail/restaurant tenants who will be serving food within their respective spaces. Will these tenants need to comply with the Nourishment feature requirements?

No, the Nourishment requirements are only applicable to food provided by the project owner or provided by a vendor who is under contract with the project owner, which for a Core and Shell project the project owner is the building developer. Tenants within the building do not need to meet these requirements.

If the tenant decided to pursue the New and Existing Interiors or the Retail Pilot certification, then the nourishment feature requirements would be applicable.

My project is not located in the United States. How does the WELL Building Standard address the nourishment category for countries that not include the United States with different cultural meal practices?

IWBI recognizes the various cultural differences in meal practices and therefore recommends the project to submit an Alternative Adherence Path (AAP) to confirm the project meets the feature intent for the Nourishment concept. In addition, please review the already accepted AAP's for each nourishment feature.

Please further describe the types of food programs that would be considered "sold or provided on a daily basis on the premises by (or under contract with) the project owner".

This includes all foods and beverages supplied by the project owner, or by a vendor under contract with the owner, including items sold or provided in the cafeteria, in vending machines, at a coffee bar, and items available to occupants in the kitchen/pantry area.

In my project, the kitchen where food is prepared is located in an existing building outside of my project boundary, however the eating area where food is served is located within the project area. Are the WELL Nourishment concept requirements applicable for the project?

Yes, if the food served in the eating area is provided daily under the direction of the owner, all of the Nourishment preconditions need to be met by the project regardless of where the food is prepared.

If no food is sold or served within the eating area or break area, most of the Nourishment precondition features would be considered out of scope. However, features 41 and 45 may still be applicable to the project.

My project does have catering for special events but not on a daily basis. Do the WELL Nourishment features apply to this catering?

No, if food is not catered on a daily basis, most of the Nourishment features are considered out of scope. However, features 41 and 45 may be applicable to your project.

This is a legacy version of the WELL Building Standard. Please check the latest version here.

Serving sizes