Prison loaf

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Prison loaf, sometimes called Food loaf, Nutriloaf, Confinement Loaf or Special Management Meal, is a food item sometimes used in prisons as a deterrent to misbehavior. It is similar to meatloaf in texture, but has a wider variety of ingredients, including vegetables, meat, and other ingredients. Some versions may be vegetarian or completely vegan. The ingredients are baked into a solid loaf-like form. In some institutions it has no fixed recipe but is simply the regular prison meal (including drink), blended and baked into a loaf. Prison loaf is typically intended to be exceedingly bland in taste, perhaps even unpleasant, but meets all basic human nutritional needs. Prison wardens use the food as a means of punishment for ill-behaving prisoners, in particular prisoners who throw their plates and utensils in the dining hall. They may be punished by being provided with no other form of meal for prolonged periods of time as a means of breaking the prisoners' spirits and encouraging them to change their behavior.^[1]^[2]

Although prison loaf has been employed in many United States prisons, its use is somewhat controversial. The standards of the American Correctional Association, which accredits prisons, discourage the use of food as a disciplinary measure, but adherence to the organization's food standards is voluntary.^[1] Denying inmates food as punishment has been found to be unconstitutional by the United States Supreme Court, but because the loaf is generally nutritionally complete, it is sometimes justified as a "dietary adjustment" rather than a denial of proper meals.^[1]