The big office cake debate
Sweet treats in the workplace just got political
‘OH, IF I MUST!’ is the phrase that comes to mind when cake is passed around the office on a slow Friday (or often, in these hybrid days, Thursday) afternoon. With a cheeky smile and guilty eyes, we’ve all done the faux-demure reach for the last slice when a sugar spike seems the only thing that will see you through till 6pm. But apparently we need no longer worry about sweet treats taking advantage of our post-meeting wilting willpower: cakes in the office are officially cancelled.
According to Professor Susan Jebb, chairwoman of the Food Standards Agency, employees should resist bringing cakes into the workplace to create a ‘supportive environment’ around food.
‘We all like to think we’re rational, intelligent, educated people who make informed choices the whole time, and we undervalue the impact of the environment,’ she told The Times. ‘If nobody brought cakes into the office, I would not eat cakes in the day, but because people do bring cakes in, I eat them. Now, OK, I have made a choice, but people were making a choice to go into a smoky pub. With smoking, after a very long time we have got to a place where we understand that individuals have to make some effort but that we can make their efforts more successful by having a supportive environment. We still don’t feel like that about food.’
It’s true that office working changes our eating habits. According to one 2020 study looking at health app data during the pandemic, working from home was associated with increased intake of fruits, vegetables and dairy products. While we did tend to snack more at home, researchers concluded that ‘diet quality improved during the pandemic in general’. It seems that without the need for fast food lunches or a vending machine break, we all took up healthier eating habits. But does that really mean we should cancel sweet treats in the office for good?
‘Of course, if an office is putting on a spread there should be a range of options so people can enjoy fruit or vegetable snacks as well as cakes or chocolate, but it’s just plain joyless to ban cake,’ says Lily, 28, who works in an office two days a week, three at home. ‘I’d actually be concerned about the message it sends to staff. Rather than creating a supportive environment, I think it enforces harmful stereotypes around guilty pleasure eating, which perpetuates diet culture.’
Gemma, 34, who also works in an office a few days a week, is on the fence. ‘I wouldn’t necessarily want it banned, but I do agree that it’s not always helpful to have piles of sugary treats lying around,’ she says. ‘People’s relationships with food are so personal and I’ve always hated that the go-to celebratory food or afternoon snack was something unhealthy. It promotes mindless eating, in a sense, especially if people are just eating what’s around the office out of convenience or to save money.’
Nutritionist Penny Weston says, ultimately, we should have free will when it comes to cake. ‘I don’t think a ban is effective because it’s down to personal responsibility. People have just got to learn what the sugar rush is going to do to them and say no. Of course we want to promote healthy lifestyles, so my suggestion would be to encourage workers to bring in a healthy snack to share once a week, have a “no bake” day or a fruit bowl available to employees to help themselves.’ So it seems – provided there are healthy options and people aren’t pressured into anything – the answer is: let them eat cake.