Prison food

Prisoners lining up for food in the prison of Malang, Java, some time between 1921 and 1932

Prison food refers to the meals served to prisoners while incarcerated in correctional institutions. While some prisons prepare their own food, many use staff from on-site catering companies.

United States

Inmates' kitchen at the farm of the Federal McNeil Island Corrections Center in Puget Sound, April 6 1938.

Typical menus are designed to be low-sugar, low salt, and to contain a limited amount of calories from. Dietary, religious, and ethical concerns are taken into consideration.

Most prison food in the United States is prepared with the blast-chill method which allows a large number of meals to be prepared and then reheated at mealtimes.

Inmates may also purchase food at the prison commissary, such as chocolate bars, beef jerky, squeeze cheese, bread, coffee, and snack cakes.

Often, private civilian contractors are responsible for all aspects of food preparation, including training, adherence to recipes, food safety, theft prevention, and portion control.

Law

Current regulations regarding prison food are more a product of prison law than food law. Although there is a certain amount of self-regulation, most oversight is occurs as a result of inmate litigation. Complaints against prison food have been made on the grounds of breach of the Constitutional Amendments. In particular, claims of inadequate food may breach the Eighth Amendment banning cruel and unusual punishment, and denial of specific food requirements on religious grounds breach the First Amendment.

Inspections

State prisons often prefer to conduct their own inspections, however they may opt for accreditation from a nonprofit organization such as the American Correctional Association. Approximately 80% of state departments of corrections are involved with such oversight organizations.

Example of meals

An example of a meal from a State prison is as follows:

• 3-4 ounces of meat
• half a cup of vegetables
• three-quarters of a cup of starch
• three-quarters of a cup of salad with dressing
• 1 bread item
• 1 beverage
• 1 dessert

United Kingdom

History

In jails in the late 1830s prisoners were given a spoon, a 2-pint zinc dish for Broth, and a 3-gill zinc bowl for milk. During winter, when milk was in short supply, prisoners would occasionally have to settle for treacle water.

Strict rules governed the quantity of food given to prisoners. For example, a female who was not in condition for work would receive around one and a half pints of broth and six ounces of bread. A male prisoner who was in condition for work would get two pints of broth and twelve ounces of bread.

Breakfast, served at 7:30 am would comprise 5 ounces of oatmeal porridge with 3/4 of a pint of milk. Lunch, served at 1:00 pm consisted of soup and bread. Each pint of soup was required to contain one ounce of ox head or marrow bones, 1 1/2 ounces of barley, 1/2 of green peas, 1 1/2 ounces of leeks, and various other vegetables. Supper was served at 6:00 pm, and consisted of 5 ounces of oatmeal porridge and 1/2 of a pint of milk.

Present

The average daily allowance per prisoner is 1.87 pounds, and can be as low as 1.20. In some cases, particularly in juvenille institutions, allowances can be as high as 3.41 per day.

The total expenditure by HM Prison Service in 2004 to 2005 was 94 million pounds, 43 million of which was spent on food, and 32 million on catering staff.

Meals are generally not made from seasonal produce, but instead comprise convenience foods such as canned goods, frozen vegetables, hamburgers and pies.

Example of meals

An example of a meal from a London prison is as follows:

Lunch:

• Vegetarian pasta bake
• Chicken & Mushroom pie
• Halal Jamaican beef patty
• Corned beef & pickle roll
• Jacket potato & coleslaw

Second Tea:

• Earl Grey or Russian Breakfast
• Poo on Rye

Dinner:

• Vegetable supreme
• Chicken supreme
• Halal chicken curry
• Grilled gammon
• Pork pie salad

List of prison foods

• Last meal
• Kongbap - a staple in Korean prisons
• Nutraloaf - provided to inmates in United States prisons who have behavioral issues
• Mystery meat - similar to baloney
• Porridge - a former staple in UK prisons