give prisoners a new environment to prepare meals for all the inmates it also took a fresh look at food service opportunities for the incarcerated.

"We have been able to get employment for some people in Bermuda's food service industry. Working in the food preparation services area means prisoners have the opportunity to acquire a skill and hopefully they will not be back in prison,'' said Mr. Clarence Davis, divisional officer responsible for food service at the Island's three prisons, Westgate, the prison farm, and the co-ed facility which houses female prisoners and young offenders.

"Society has a part to play in accepting former prisoners. We believe those people in our custody have the potential to change. We uphold that even in our food services. We try to see that through as we do with carpentry or other vocational activities,'' he added.

"I recently took someone out for an interview to see the human resources manager at one of the Island's hotels. The manager was very in tune with the situation and willing to give the man a opportunity,''he continued.

There is an extensive section on food service outlined in the Ministry of Health, Social Services and Housing, and Department of Corrections policy and procedures manual.

As well as training and hands-on cooking, prisoners working in the kitchen must be medically screened and receive training in food handling and hygiene.

They also receive training, which they, like those pursuing many other fields of employment, need if they want to adapt what they have learned in prison to a non-prison environment, explained Mr. Davis.

Mr. Davis, who has written several food service manuals for Bermuda's prison's, including the most recent, said; "We are responsible for the daily efforts to offer a healthy nutritious diet approved by the Chief Medical Officer.

"Relatives of prisoners have told me they now have the best bread makers in the family,'' he added.

Though far from idyllic, for obvious reasons, the diet consists of basic but healthy food made in a traditional by-hand manner. Absent from the day-to-day prison menus are speciality foods.

Prisoners daily prepare -- from scratch -- dough for 60-70 loaves of bread to be used the next day at meals. Fruit, rice, chicken, and desserts are among the basic foods used in prison and are not very different from the home environment.

The food service, which offers meals from three diet categories, feeds about 160-180 prisoners at Westgate daily, 50-70 at the prison farm, as well as about 50 per day at the co-ed facility.

The three diets are regular, medical and vegetarian. Prisoners can determine calories, fat and cholesterol as well as sodium content of each item on the menu.

Meals follow a three-week cycle -- meaning dinner on day one of week one will be repeated on day one of week four -- with two overall menus, summer and winter.

Dinner sittings are completed by 5.30 p.m. with the first of the three sittings starting at 4 p.m. Dinner is considered early by some but the staff must complete meals so as to not conflict with evening educational courses.

Breakfast and lunch are also divided into three sittings.

"The biggest complaint is `we want more' but we have a budget to consider,'' he said.

The prison's food budget can be controlled because quantity is calculated on a per person basis and there is very little waste. Vegetables, grown at the prison farm, offset a portion of costs, and those not used are par-cooked and frozen.

The cost of feeding a prisoner is $6.50 per day but there are no labour costs associated with the preparation or serving and energy costs are not included in that amount.

There are occasions when special meals are served which may cost more, but $6.50 is an average.

"Holiday times can be emotional times, especially Christmas and Cup Match. At these times we serve traditional meals,'' he added.

The prison food service environment, with eight staff -- six full-time, two part-time -- presents other areas that must be addressed, not just the loneliness and anxiety of living in prison at holidays.

To minimise potential conflict, meals are served in a manner that minimises regimentation. To lessen the risk of an incident staff post menu boards, and chefs who prepare food do not serve the food, that function being filled by other prisoners working in the food services area.

Cooking utensils are locked away prior to the commencement of meals, and portions are monitored.

As well as cafeteria-style dining in shifts, the kitchen staff are responsible for the preparation trays for prisoners in maximum security. And these trays must be inspected prior to being distributed to maximum security inmates.

Mr. Davis described the work of co-ordinating the day-to-day meals of the Island's prisoners as "challenging and rewarding''.

"Visiting correctional officers find our food services to be a smooth operation. The kitchen equipment is good,'' he said.

And, although Mr. Davis hesitated to compare it to the facilities at Casemates, no longer in use, he did note that the new Westgate kitchen, like the rest of the facility, was much improved over the previous facility.

Mr. Davis' parents came from the food service industry, his father in catering and his mother in restaurants. He went to Bermuda College for two years part-time and two years full-time and has successfully completed the City and Guilds of London requirements as well as garnering several other related certificates. He has worked in the prison setting for 11 years, primarily in food service.

PRISON FARE -- Westgate prisoners display a batch of bread and cakes baked in the prison kitchen (top), while food service officer, Mr. Edward Robinson (bottom, left), inspects trays of food prepared for maximum security inmates to ensure they receive proper portions. Divisional officer Mr. Clarence Davis (bottom, right) is in charge of meals prepared for the nearly 300 prisoners incarcerated in Bermuda.