Jelly Tots and Jammie Dodgers among the most popular items in prison tuck shops

The Irish Prison Service has said that profits generated from tuck-shop purchases are used to support prisoners through the Prisoner Assist Programme Fund, facilitating hardship payments and support for other services.

Inmates are expected to spend up to €80m on sweets, tobacco, fizzy drinks and other discretionary items from prison tuck shops over the next four years.

The Irish Prison Service (IPS) has signed a contract with wholesaler BWG Foods UC for the supply and delivery of products for tuck shops located in the country’s 12 detention facilities.

Around 1,500 retail items are available to inmates through the on-site shops, but tender documents reveal that sweets, biscuits, cakes and desserts dominate a list of the most popular products.

These include Jelly Tots, Skittles, Jammie Dodgers, Kinder Bueno, Pineapple Swiss Roll, and iced buns. Inmates’ favourite biscuits include Jaffa Cakes, Chocolate Hob Nobs, Lemon Puffs, and the classic Rich Tea.

Confectionery, biscuits, desserts, cakes, crisps and snacks, as well as minerals like Coca-Cola and Lilt, accounted for almost 60% of the 285 most popular products, according to the tender documents.

However, there is some bad news for sweet-toothed criminals, as the prison service is planning to reduce the availability of sugary snacks and drinks in the near future, substituting them with healthier options.

“The IPS is proactively working towards the reduction of sugar, carbonated drinks, high sugar intake within the prison community, as a result of general health and wellbeing considerations,” it said.

“This is being supported by circulation of information and knowledge shared among the greater prison community. As a result, the mix and range of products may likely change over the duration of this framework towards a larger range of health options.” 

Health kick

However, an inventory of the top-selling items suggests some prisoners are already on a health kick. Centrum multivitamins and Seven Seas Cod Liver Oil were on the list, along with two varieties of Kelkin Rice Cakes.

Popular toiletries included wet-look Brylcreem, Alberto coconut shampoo, ‘Feel Awake’ Radox shower gel, Lynx Temptation body wash. Four types of roll-on deodorants made the list, including Dove, Lynx Africa, and Sure.

Prisoners receive ‘pocket money’ of up to €2.20 per day and can earn an additional €3.50 per week for working in areas like kitchens, laundries and maintenance under the Approved Working Gratuity Scheme.

A total of €3.1 million in pocket money was given to prisoners last year, while inmates received an additional €4.9 million in gifts and transfers from families and friends.

The IPS has said that profits generated from tuck-shop purchases are used to support prisoners through the Prisoner Assist Programme Fund, facilitating hardship payments and support for other services.

Tender documents and a contract award notice published by the IPS estimate the total spend under the framework at between €60 million and €80 million excluding VAT over the next four years.