When Marines with 1st Battalion, 2nd Marines, arrived at Kadena Air Base in Okinawa, Japan, for a unit deployment program cycle they were prepared for a two week restriction of movement period required to help prevent the spread of COVID-19.
They knew that at least for two weeks they’d be missing out on the famous taco rice, and instead would receive tray rations for breakfast and dinner along with a lunch provided by an outside vendor contracted by Marine Corps Installations Pacific.
But when the lunch arrived on the first day it was moldy, expired and even when good to eat the portions were way too small for the Marines, Marines told Marine Corps Times.
The Marines first went to their chain of command, they said, who initially dismissed the problem while some officers joked about the situation, one Marine told Marine Corps Times on the condition of anonymity.
For five days the Marines were served “two year old expired sandwiches,” and told by their command to “eat around the mold,” the Marine said on Aug. 17.
“There’s no eating around it, the bread is completely wet and covered in mold, the meat on the sandwiches is very, very questionable,” the Marine added.
The sandwiches were sent to the Marines by mistake, Maj. Ken Kunze, a spokesman for Marine Corps Installations Pacific, told Marine Corps Times in an email.
“These were prepackaged meals from a vendor that were previously identified for disposal,” he said.
Kunze said MCIPAC was informed of the situation by 1/2‘s chain of command “within a few hours” of the battalion’s leadership discovering the moldy sandwiches.
But the Marines claimed they were forced to go to social media to post pictures of the long-expired food before any change happened, the Marine said.
One person told Marine Corps Times in an email that they organized a food drive in the hopes of sending some home-cooked meals, but that the food was rejected by the Marine Corps.
“The reason homemade goods were not able to be provided to the Marines of 1/2 at this time is due to the strict ‘bubble’ established around their ROM site and the commitment to maintaining mitigation measures that are in place,” Maj. Kurt Stahl, a spokesman for the 3rd Marine Division, told Marine Corps Times in an email Aug. 20.
The Marines claim that after the posts garnered mass attention on Facebook and Instagram the chain of command allegedly told the Marines of 1/2 to take down the posts and started to “harass” the Marines.
One Marine claimed Sgt. Maj. Michael Youngblood, the unit’s sergeant major, was going to the rooms of Marines who he knew posted pictures and “blasting them for trying to expose the food.” The Marine added that people in the battalion were warned that they could face nonjudicial punishment for “unprofessional” posts about the food.
A spokesman for the 3rd Marine Division denied that any Marines would receive punishment for the social media posts.
“Marines are always encouraged to bring up issues with their chain of command so that they can be addressed at the appropriate levels,” Stahl said in an email Aug. 18. “At this time, we are not considering this a violation of military regulations and, therefore, not pursuing disciplinary action.”
Emails to Youngblood for comment went unanswered.
When asked about whether anyone in the command did or could go door to door, the Marine Corps said, “Leaders may need to move through the halls in order to ensure the well-being of Marines and Sailors. These leaders will not enter Marines’ rooms, but they can communicate with them verbally if PPE and strict social distancing guidelines are observed.”
The Marines eventually were given a better lunch, Marines in the battalion said.
Kunze said the Corps was taking measures to ensure that moldy and inadequate food will not be served to Marines on restriction of movement again.
“Members of the MCIPAC staff are currently inspecting all prepackaged meals and working with employees to ensure this doesn’t happen again,” Kunze said.
“Battalion leadership is also working with the USO and MCCS to provide supplemental meals and snacks for the Marines,” he added.
