To snack during zoom meetings?

[Fiep]

Every day I have to log onto a meeting which is largely not applicable to me. We have a camera on, microphone off culture which I am fine with. However this interminable meeting coincides with my snack time so I’m often having my mid morning snack while listening / multitasking.

DD gets me up at 5:30am so I definitely need morning snacks to make it to lunch. Nobody else ever eats in meetings though so I just wondered whether I’m breaking the etiquette.

AIBU to snack?

YABU: control yourself, woman, and stop eating ion screen, nobody wants to see this

YANBU: nobody cares what you’re doing if you’re just a lurker, munch away.

YABU

You’re an adult, you don’t need a set snack time, eat before or after the meeting unless it takes all morning.

I think you should tackle the question of why you are having to waste so much of your time at this meeting. Others may be feeling the same as you.

"your snack time"? Are you 3?

Wow this is so weird, no you don't need to snack in a Zoom meeting, you do it before or after

If it's your immediate team O would, but I was on a big Zoom recently with lots of strangers and O was shocked to see one man having his dinner! At least mute yourself and turn the camera off.

And while we're at it, being in a small breakout discussion with 3 or 4 others and appearing as just "Joe's iPad" and staying silent even when directly asked to contribute is really rude too, unless you've collapsed at the keyboard and are being stretchered into an ambulance.

For O read I!

I have a colleague who eats their breakfast on zoom meetings. They have a camera on their laptop so it’s tilted upwards toward their face. Believe me a bowl of milky cereal being spooned into an open gob in front of the camera is not a pleasant sight. The day they had yoghurt instead was a low point.

If you’re eating the etiquette is to turn your camera and mic off and just listen.

Never met an adult with a designated snack time

Although since WFH my DCs realised that I apparently have an elevenses habit - emerging from my office to make a cup of tea and a biscuit. (so they started bringing them in to me which once - I forgot to blur my background - led to me explaining elevenses to incredulous foreign colleagues. Who almost all said "I thought they invented that in LOTR"

I hate when people eat on camera on Zoom. It's really unpleasant and distracting to look at, and also gives off a lazy vibe. Just turn off your camera if you absolutely have to eat at that moment.

I think Yabu as it’s just a snack but no qualms about eating during lunchtime meetings.

Thanks for all the replies, I’m entertained by the strength of feeling about this and also glad I asked, obviously I don’t want to be grossing anyone out.

To answer some queries:

• I would eat in a face to face meeting too and people often do.
• Obviously I don’t have a “snack time” as such, it was a bit tongue in cheek. By “snack” I mean food eaten between meals (isn’t that the normal definition?!).
• it isn’t that long a meeting but it just so happens that my role is very active and customer facing so the meeting is the only opportunity before lunch to quickly cram a cereal bar. Sound off obvs.

Thanks to your feedback I’ll be turning my camera off too while eating and presumably this will lead to increased contentment among colleagues if the strength of feeling on MN is anything to go by 😂

I do find it interesting though as personally I wouldn’t care if someone ate a snack, I feel like we’re all human and have basic needs but I guess that’s why I asked!

I have to say I’m surprised at the amount of people who don’t snack? I thought it’s considered healthy? Do people not get hungry? Or hangry?

I full on laughed at the idea of a Scotch Egg or a roast dinner, imagine!!!

A cereal bar? Wouldn’t bother me

Yes. Have your snack earlier.

It does also depend on the size of the meeting m, too.

8+ people, presumably no one is paying attention to you if you hardly ever have to speak.

2-4 people, if you’re the only one chewing then but more noticeable and potential for rudely distracting others…

A cereal bar is fairly innocuous, I reckon, if you don't talk through mouthfuls of it. Laughing and grossed out by the milky cereal!

As someone with a bit of creepy neck these days, I pop my laptop on an upturned shoebox I keep handy by my desk. It's stable, and it gives just enough extra height to avoid focus on the problem area.

Have to say I've learned more than I ever wanted to know about that weird web of skin we all have between finger and thumb from all the adjustments being made mid-meeting. 🙈

I get up at 5 most days. I don't have morning snack time.

I'm not saying that you can't snack just because I don't, but surely you can wait until you aren't in a camera on meeting? You won't starve.

Crepey neck! Though you could call it creepy too.

@NoSquirrels it’s like 20 people and there is only one fixed point near the end where I have to respond to something with one sentence.

I’m pretty sure I’d be off screen for most people (and I’m also pretty sure most people are actually just multitasking and not looking at the screen). So I discreetly shove bits of belvita bake into my mouth. Don’t think people can see any slobbering or the internal landscape of my mouth, which would really gross me out too tbh.

But I think on balance the “don’t do it” brigade has the win on this AIBU so I will stop! Or turn off the camera.

I'm pregnant and can't get through a half hour zoom meeting without snacking on something or my nausea would prevent me from taking part. I usually wait until someone is sharing their screen and people are otherwise occupied with that, or I'll turn my camera off for a few seconds to nibble on something. Although I think drinking and popping a mint or similar is fine. I have eaten a sandwich in an internal meeting, but the meeting was purposely arranged over lunchtime (it was a bit extra curricular) so I think thats acceptable.

My old boss would run zoom meetings for hours, through lunchtime, and eat and talk throughout. So rude.

@SengaMac

This

Would you eat in the meeting room if you were in the office?

This.

Oh something I do sometimes as an alternative to turning off the camera is just leaning sideways out of frame. It’s easy to do that, take a bite of cereal bar and pop back in sight while you swallow it.

No I wouldn't, the cameras are unflattering at the best of times without someone chomping on food.

@SengaMac

This

Would you eat in the meeting room if you were in the office?

People do in meeting rooms. If it’s a regular internal meeting I think it’s fine.

I work often sit on a succession of meetings, lots of people eat. We are a ‘get it done’ fast paced company. That means flexibility both ways. Board meeting, partner /client meeting - no food for sure.

Low key attitude- eg snacking, appearance unless it’s external facing generally leads to less stress, more work effort and longer hours unpaid in my experience.