A small red pepper plant is ready to harvest in a garden tended by incarcerated women at the Women’s Eastern Reception, Diagnostic and Correctional Center in Vandalia, Mo. An oversight report in New York recommends that the state expand prison horticulture programs so incarcerated people can grow their own food. (Photo by Amanda Watford/Stateline)

Incarcerated people in New York state prisons face significant challenges in accessing healthy and affordable food, according to a new report from the Correctional Association of New York, or CANY, an independent oversight organization designated by state law.

This problem is not unique to New York: Researchers and advocacy groups have long documented that prison and jail meals nationwide are often insufficient in quantity, lacking in nutrients

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