View Full Version : Court to decide if unpopular prison food is
punishment  03-23-2008, 11:41 PM Montpelier, VT.  When shooting
suspect Christopher Williams acted up in prison, he was given
nutraloaf- a mixture of cubed whole wheat bread, nondairy
cheese, raw carrots, spinach, seedless raisins, beans, veggie
oil, tomato paste, powdered milk, and dehydrated potato flakes.
Prison officials call it a complete meal. Inmates say it so
awful, they'd rather go hungry. On Monday, the Vermont Supreme
Court will hear arguments in a class action suit brought by the
inmates who say it's not food, but punishment and that everyone
subjected to it should get a formal disciplinary process first.
Prison officials see nutraloaf as a tool for behavior
modification. "It's commonplace in other states as a way of
providing nutrition in a mechanism that dissuades inmates from
throwing feces, urine, trays and silverware." said Vermont
Corrections Commissioner Rob Hofmann. "It tends to have the
desired outcome," Hofmann said. "Once t