“Aramark is using it to exploit a captive consumer market of incarcerated people and their families to unlawfully profit off them.” – Shennan Kavanagh, director of litigation at the National Consumer Law Center
CHARLESTON, W.Va. – A group of incarcerated people and their family members filed a sweeping federal class action lawsuit this week alleging that Aramark Corporation is running an illegal scheme to profit from inadequate food service in West Virginia prisons, forcing a captive population to purchase food from commissary, Fresh Favorites, and iCare packages to meet basic nutritional needs.
The complaint centers on Mount Olive Correctional Complex, the state’s largest prison, but argues that the pattern reflects a broader statewide and national problem.
The lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia, asserts that Aramark controls every avenue through which food can enter the prison.
According to the complaint, “Aramark has exclusive control over all food provisions in West Virginia’s correctional facilities, including at Mt. Olive,” and incarcerated people “are a captive market and have no choices for obtaining or purchasing food other than through Aramark.” Family members similarly have no alternative avenues to send food.
Plaintiffs allege that Aramark fails to provide adequate meals despite being required—under state contract and West Virginia law—to serve food that is wholesome, sufficient, and nutritionally balanced.
The lawsuit claims that Aramark’s daily meals routinely fall far short of these obligations, with incarcerated people reporting processed meat pellets, canned vegetables, reused leftovers, and missing ingredients in recipes that are supposed to include meat, dairy, and fresh produce.
The complaint states that by limiting “the quality, quantity, and variety of daily meals services,” Aramark drives incarcerated consumers toward its food-for-purchase programs, enabling the company to “extract a profit on both ends.”
Shennan Kavanagh, director of litigation at the National Consumer Law Center, said Aramark is using a basic human necessity as leverage.
“Food is a uniquely powerful tool, and Aramark is using it to exploit a captive consumer market of incarcerated people and their families to unlawfully profit off them,” she said. “Aramark’s misconduct has been widely publicized, and it is time for it to treat all of its consumers fairly, including incarcerated people and their families.”
The lawsuit describes a pattern in which Aramark allegedly cuts costs on daily meals—providing inadequate amounts of meat, dairy, and vegetables—while marketing Fresh Favorites and iCare packages as higher quality alternatives featuring items missing from the free meals.
The complaint points to Aramark’s own advertising, which presents Fresh Favorites as a source of “fresh vegetables,” “variety,” and meals that “boost morale.” According to the complaint, incarcerated people regularly see promotional posters for Fresh Favorites while standing in line for their daily meals, which they often describe as insufficient or inedible.
The plaintiffs detail firsthand experiences that they argue demonstrate a widespread and systemic problem.
One plaintiff, Roger D. Smith, has been incarcerated at Mount Olive since 2007.
He reported a significant decline in the quality and quantity of food, stating that vegetables are now mostly canned, fresh meat has been replaced by “turkey pellets,” and variety has diminished. Smith said that during his brief period working in the kitchen, he “witnessed kitchen workers pick bugs out of gravy that was then served to the incarcerated population,” and saw old, frozen meals saved and later served to people in segregation and medical units.
Another plaintiff, Marcus P. McKinley, described hearing from kitchen workers that Aramark intentionally restricts ingredients. According to the complaint, workers told him that “if a meal calls for 20 pounds of meat, Aramark only gives the workers 12 pounds of the meat to add to the meal.” McKinley also reported that portion sizes have become so small “that Mr. McKinley and others are often not full after eating their meals.”
The lawsuit asserts that these practices leave incarcerated people with no realistic option but to purchase supplemental food, despite earning extremely low wages.
The complaint notes that many incarcerated workers earn well under a dollar per hour. One Fresh Favorites vegetable tray costs $10.00, meaning that at Mount Olive an incarcerated person “must work for more than 11 hours to eat a single plate of fresh vegetables.”
Family members say they feel compelled to purchase food through Aramark as well. Sandra Rush, whose son has been incarcerated at Mount Olive since 2024, said she buys iCare packages because her son tells her the daily meals are “bland, tasteless, and contain no fresh vegetables.”
The lawsuit notes that Rush is on a fixed income but “prioritizes spending money on iCare packages for her son… because she knows that he is not receiving adequate daily meals services.” She has spent roughly $400 on iCare food since his incarceration.
Another plaintiff, Judy Riggs, purchased food for her brother for years until his death in 2025 and continues to buy packages for a friend incarcerated at Mount Olive. She estimates she has spent more than $4,000 on food purchased through Aramark since 2022 because, she reported, loved ones “do not get enough food to eat, and the food is not good.”
The complaint also situates Aramark’s actions within a broader national pattern, citing previous allegations of spoiled meals, undercooked or contaminated food, and contract cancellations in states including Michigan, California, Mississippi, Ohio, and Missouri.
Advocates argue that the company’s conduct violates the West Virginia Consumer Credit and Protection Act and constitutes unfair practices that harm incarcerated consumers and their families.
They also claim Aramark engages in economic duress by leaving people with no alternative source of food, forcing purchases under coercive conditions. The lawsuit further alleges unjust enrichment, asserting that Aramark knowingly profits from both its paid food programs and its alleged under-provision of state-funded meals.
Lydia Milnes, deputy director of Mountain State Justice, said the financial burden on families is substantial.
“Soaring food prices and utility bills are already straining West Virginian’s budgets; families with loved ones in prison cannot afford to keep sending money to Aramark, a huge national corporation, simply to make sure their loved ones have enough to eat, especially when Aramark is already receiving millions from the State of West Virginia to feed those same people,” she said.
Rebecca Livengood, partner at Relman Colfax, said the plaintiffs are seeking accountability and systemic change.
“Aramark’s scheme has and continues to substantially injure the consumers incarcerated at Mt. Olive and their loved ones, all to unjustly profit from consumers who have no choice or bargaining power,” she said. “We are proud to represent our courageous Plaintiffs leading this class action to ensure justice for West Virginians.”
The plaintiffs seek monetary damages, restitution, declaratory relief, and an injunction halting what they describe as Aramark’s unlawful practices.
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