A
female
age
36-40,
anonymous
writes:Hi everyone, this might sound like a trivial problem but it’s really bothering me. I recently started a new job and the man that sits next to me is a bodybuilder and as such eats an entire tub of cottage cheese at his desk every day at 9am. I think partly due to how early it is and partly due to the sour smell of cottage cheese anyway, it makes me feel physically sick. He eats it slowly so it can mean up to 45 minutes of dealing with the smell and it’s really affecting my work. I tried to bring it up gently with my boss but he just laughed it off and said it’s disgusting but it’s his choice what he eats. I don’t want a reputation as a trouble maker in this new workplace and I do like my colleague so I’m not trying to have a go at him but it’s really awful. Any suggestions?
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female
reader, Andie's Thoughts +, writes (3 November 2017):
 You may have missed my first comment because your follow up came before my response was approved, but some scented candles still smell without ever being lit (like Yankee Candles in jars with lids!), or a small incense pot, perfume or car freshener (not spray) may help.
A
male
reader, Fatherly Advice  + ♥, writes (3 November 2017):
 well I guess everyone has their trigger. Bravo to you for handling boiled eggs and tuna. I'm pretty sure grazing all day at a sit down job is not a great plan for body building. Where I work now there is no lunch / break area. Fortunately I have office walls. I am careful not to eat foods that will inspire my neighbor off of his diet.
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A
female
reader, YouWish +, writes (3 November 2017):
 Oh, your boss sucks. I had a co-worker who ate egg salad that reeked of smelly onions and stale Miracle Whip at her cube when I was younger, and I promise that I wasn't the only one who complained about it. Unfortunately, she was a bully who intimidated the boss and everyone else, and HR kept promising to "look in" on it, but nothing ever changed for 6 months.
Well, when one of my friends became pregnant with her first son, and it was not only a high-risk pregnancy (she was ultimately placed on bedrest for the last couple of months), I did something different, because she was literally getting violently sick every day that this asshat came into the office and ate that disgusting crap.
I went to a party store and picked up the most rotten stink bombs I could find, cracked them open, and used a makeup brush to spread the contents on the underside of the lid and the outside of the tupperware to the egg salad while it was in the fridge. I warned my co-workers that I was going to do this.
Holy hell, it WORKED! She thought there was a leak in the fridge causing food to rot. It only took me 2 weeks to "anoint" her container before she got the hint and started eating something else, believing the work fridge to be not adequately doing its job.
I wouldn't recommend being THAT evil without good cause. My friend had had a really hard time getting pregnant in the first place, and I'd be damned if I was going to let egg salad screw up her keeping nutrients down.
The woman, who had a bunch of other problems, didn't last long on the job at any rate. She found another job, one she boasted was "much better", and hopefully she lived smelly ever after.
PS, my co-worker and I are still friends. Her son just turned 19 last month. :)
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A
female
reader, chigirl  +, writes (3 November 2017):
 Air freshener will definitely do the trick. The kind you usually have in the bathroom. Once our dog was feeling unwell and had diarrhea all over our living room. The smell was unbearable even after we cleaned it up. We had to leave the room for hours and hours and the smell was still there. Leaving the windows open didn't do much. So then we went to the store and bought scented candles and air freshener and you name it. So this has been scientifically tested, lol. Air freshened does the trick. Scented candles only help so much, and they only help while they burn. Plus the fire risk. But air freshener... just a few sprays and you will smell nothing but lemon for 8 hours straight.
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A
reader, anonymous, writes (3 November 2017): This is verified as being by the original poster of the questionThanks to everyone for responding.
To answer a few questions, we work in a call centre so we have strict times that we are allowed to leave our desks to ensure there’s enough phone resource. He usually has a spoonful in between each call ending and the next being pushed through which is why it takes him ages to eat. So unfortunately either me or him moving away really isn’t an option.
He does eat constantly throughout the day, which people do comment on regularly, it just doesn’t seem to be a problem for most. I can handle most of it - the Cajun chicken pasta salad (and actually occasionally tuna), bananas, apples and even 7 hard boiled eggs don’t bother me, it’s just something about the sour smell of the cheese. I didn’t realise I had an issue with it before as its not something I eat. My mum even asked if I’m pregnant but I’m not!!
I have had some great suggestions though - I’ll try the fan, air freshener and popping some vicks/perfume under my nose before he eats it. Candles sadly aren’t allowed as I suspected (fire safety etc). And if it doesn’t help I’ll speak with him again.
Thanks again folks!
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A
female
reader, CindyCares  +, writes (3 November 2017):
 Strange office. So your colleague is not allowed to leave his desk because he must answer the phone - but he is allowed to answer the phones munching on his 45 minutes "snack", with his mouth full of food ?
I would insist with the boss. This is so tacky, it's more on less on par with having an employee cutting his toenail at his desk. I suppose no client or supplier or management executive ever happens to visit your offices ?
Anyway, I would go with the scented candles , and if anybody objects, I would raise a big stink ( pun intended ): how can it be lighting a candle °less° acceptable , both in terms of the company image AND of the rules of civil cohabitation in the office , that turning your office desk into a smelly, permanent picnic area ?
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male
reader, Fatherly Advice + ♥, writes (3 November 2017):
Sorry for some reason I thought this thread would be about Vietnamese food.
Here is what I suggest. He should switch from Cottage Cheese to Tuna fish (canned) it is a much leaner source of protean. Also after a week or two of that, you would be ecstatic that he was eating cottage cheese.
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A
female
reader, chigirl +, writes (2 November 2017):
Ask him if he wouldn't mind not eating at his desk as it distracts you from your work? Or find another option for where you sit during this time period. Eating at his desk though, really. Don't you have a room to eat your food at? It's unhygienic especially if you guys work on computers.
But, at the end of the day, this is what it's like when you don't have the luxury of your own office. Just another thing to suck up. I would suggest you start leaving your desk if you get sick, and return when he's done. Im sure there are other tasks you can do while he's eating. Such as copying files. Or cleaning something. Or network by the coffee machine.
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A
female
reader, Tisha-1 +, writes (2 November 2017):
 Get a small fan to blow the food odors away from your desk. Dab perfume or scented oil under your nose. Keep a bowl of coffee beans on your desk that you can inhale to cleanse the odor from your nostrils. Suggest your coworker look into drinking protein drinks or smoothies he can cover with a lid and drink through a straw. Get a small air freshener you can spritz into the air as needed.
If the scent is that vile that you feel physically ill, I almost hate to suggest it, but perhaps vomiting into the trash can at your desk might convince the powers that be that you really physically can't tolerate rancid milk odors?
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A
female
reader, Anonymous 123 +, writes (2 November 2017):
 When I was a student, these girls who lived next door used to eat the smelliest food and it was absolutely nauseating. I can well imagine your ordeal. However, in your case I don't think you can do much other than request the guy to please maybe have his food at home because the smell gives you a migraine. Apologise for asking him but tell him that you're awfully allergic to any smell, even perfumes, and the slightest trigger can wreak havoc
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A
male
reader, Denizen +, writes (2 November 2017):
 Assuming your office does not have a 'No food at desk' policy, and that staff are allowed to take food breaks at any time, you might try making your point by putting an air freshener on your desk.
You could also run an ioniser which will make air borne particulants sink to the floor.
Personally I don't think cottage cheese should be a worry for most people, but each to his own.
As you are the newcomer, it is highly unlikely that your line manager will disrupt the office to suit your dislikes. You could also try putting a smear of Vicks Vapour Rub under your nose when the tub of cottage cheese comes out.
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A
male
reader, Allumeuse +, writes (2 November 2017):
OP just seen your addendum, I apologise for giving you so much heat for not going to him first. Think about how you approached his cottage cheese eating- were you dispassionate enough that he merely thought you were curious, or did you let on that you hated the smell?
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A
male
reader, Allumeuse +, writes (2 November 2017):
I'd agree, it isn't super wise to start asking established members of staff to change their habits for you, and shame on you for not having the chops to ask the guy before going to your boss. It seems you boss isn't going to help you so you have four options- 1) You can ask to work further away from his desk- which might not be possible and is likely to look unfriendly2) You can show a bit of character and say to your coworker that you realise you are brand new, and you know he has the right to eat what he likes but the cottage cheese is really making your eyes water, and is there something he could eat instead? Do some research and make suggestions.3) You could structure your day so you run all of your errands, photocopying, phonecalls(on a mobile or headset) away from you desk so that you spend as little time as possible near the cheese in the morning or4) Get another job, which is the ultimate relief but not great testament to your conflict resolution or getting along with others skills. Good Luck
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A
reader, anonymous, writes (2 November 2017): This is verified as being by the original poster of the questionOh sorry I see this wasn’t clear from my original post, I have mentioned it directly to him. That’s how I know it’s for bodybuilding. He said he doesn’t even like it but he has to eat it every day to reach his goals. And since we are on the phones we are required to be at our desks so he can’t move away to eat it either. I’ll maybe look into a candle but I doubt it’d be allowed. And I also asked my boss to move seats (that’s why I mentioned it to him in the first place) and that’s when he laughed it off.
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A
female
reader, Honeypie + ♥, writes (2 November 2017):
 Ask that coworker to perhaps PLEASE eat the cottage cheese away from his desk? Do you guys have a kitchen area or common area where people can eat? If so tell him the smell makes you nauseous, could he please eat there.
Or light a scented candle?
TALK to the guy eating the stinky foods instead of your boss. YOU are old enough to ask in a nice way for him to consider that the smell is hard for you to work with. Maybe he has no clue that others might find it offensive.
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A
female
reader, Andie's Thoughts +, writes (2 November 2017):
See if you're allowed scented objects (incense, non-lit candles, car air freshener - not spray, etc.) at your desk to try to mask the smell.
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