The diet of prisoners in England

Purpose - The purpose of this research is to establish whether the meals provided by the prison service enable prisoners to follow government guidelines on nutrition and healthy eating, and the extent to which they do so. Design/methodology/approach - A total of eight prisons, four male (category A, B and Q, two female and two young offenders' institutes were randomly identified and visited. Data collection involved taking three days of cyclical menus, the institution's recipes and methods and standard or average portion sizes to calculate the mean nutrient composition of standard, healthy, vegetarian/vegan and Halal menus. Menus were also analysed to establish how well they conformed to the "Balance of Good Health". Findings - Results show that, with the exception of some nutrients, prisoners have access to and are able to choose a nutritionally balanced diet and in the main do so. All prisons have attempted to make available menus that conform to the Balance of Good Health model; however, in some cases, choice is hampered, primarily because menus have not been annotated accurately; some dishes are not always as healthy as they might or could be; and prisoners in most cases do not actually understand what constitutes a healthy balanced diet. Originality/value - There is a paucity of data on prison food service and as such. this original work adds to the body of knowledge in the field.