The Ohio prison system has been processing meat from its slaughterhouse at the London Correctional Institution where prisoners tend a herd of 175 dairy cows and grow hay, wheat, oats, and corn. That facility has been providing meat for only a few of the prisons in Ohio. The new 37,000-square-foot plant at Pickaway will provide 3.4 million pounds of beef and pork to feed 44,000 inmates in 32 prisons in the state. It is slated to be fully operational by 2007 and will provide meat for other state agencies, including the departments of mental health and youth services.

In response to criticisms here that the new plant will compete with private business, Ohio agriculture secretary Fred Dailey said, “This is going to be good for prisons and inmates, and it’s going to be good for Ohio’s beef-cattle industry. Now we have one more bidder on what we produce on Ohio farms.” The state is claiming the facility will save $2 million annually from its budget. This is largely due to the low wages prisoners are paid for such jobs.

According to Reginald Wilkinson, chief of the state prisons, 120 minimum and medium security inmates will work under strict supervision and constant video surveillance. The workers will go through a three-year apprenticeship program to become butchers. Students from the Department of Veterinary Preventive Medicine at nearby Ohio State University will train at the plant and on the prison farm. Meat inspectors will be trained on-site, according to Dailey.
 
 
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