The hidden food

Abstract

How can prisoners’ blatant aversion for the official prison food be understood? And what can we make of the various covert practices of illegal or semi-legal alternative food making that goes on behind closed cell doors? Are prisoners picky and difficult people, or is the food truly as horrible as they claim? Or could this best be understood on levels other than that of individual taste? The article will argue that prisoners experience the official prison food as a continuation of the more general attacks on their identity that imprisonment entails, denying them status as a person with competence and agency and forcefully removing them from family, friends and positioning them on the margins of the larger community outside. The daily meals thus serve as painful bodily manifestations of the power the institution holds over the individual. As Foucault reminds us, however, power may be conceptualized as a fluctuating relationship of forces, not a property of powerful groups or individuals. In such a perspective, the prison food also works as arena for prisoner identity work through practices of hidden resistance.

Feeding Relationships

“…While there were material benefits to be derived from sharing food information and supplies, establishing oneself as talented and wise within the inmate hierarchy and making connections with other human beings were also valued. The wise woman character in these participants' food stories contrasts slightly with Ugelvik's (2011) ''smart prisoner'' who impressed peers with his ability to manipulate and evade prison food regulations without necessarily sharing the bounty of his clever actions. Smuggling and cooking activities allowed women to care for each other, build social networks, and be known among their peers.…”

Prisons and Embodiment: Self-Management Strategies of an Incarcerated Population

“…Many participants expressed a desire to lose weight and live a healthier lifestyle to show family and friends they were coping with prison. Further, many of the activities relating to weight management had a social aspect (e.g., making food, talking about food, exercising in groups), as shown in previous research on food and physical activity within prison (Godderis, 2006;Ugelvik, 2011).…”

“…On the one hand, some prisoners view prisons as unhealthy, which can lead to undesirable weight gain; on the other hand, some view prisons as places where they can become healthy and achieve a desired weight. By and large, prisoners have a negative attitude to prison food that is driven by a desire to counter the power of the prison environment (Godderis, 2006;Ugelvik, 2011). This includes behaviors such as trading food or making food against prison rules.…”

“…This includes behaviors such as trading food or making food against prison rules. Food-related behaviors, however, were also found to help prisoners adapt to prison (Godderis, 2006;Ugelvik, 2011). Physical activity and sport can improve not only physical health (Battaglia et al, 2013;Gallant, Sherry, & Nicholson, 2015) but also mental health well-being through a reduction in anxiety and depression (Battaglia et al, 2015;Godderis, 2006).…”

Obesity and Weight Change in Two United Kingdom Male Prisons

“…These findings into the relationship between physical activity, food, and obesity are what would be expected in the general population (Butland et al, 2007). Therefore, although some prisoners do have a complex relationship with physical activity and food (Gallant, Sherry, & Nicholson, 2015;Ugelvik, 2011), the influence these factors have on BMI is similar to the general population.…”