The US Navy denied a report Friday that warships deployed to the Middle East were short on food and sailors were purportedly being served what some on social media described as “rationed slop.”
“Recent reports alleging food shortages and poor quality aboard our deployed ships are false,” read a statement released by the Office of the Chief of Naval Operations, run by Adm. Daryl Caudle.
“Both USS Abraham Lincoln and USS Tripoli have sufficient food onboard to serve their crews with healthy options,” the statement continued. “The health and wellbeing of our Sailors and Marines are my top priority, and every crew member continues to receive fully portioned, nutritionally balanced meals.”
Caudle’s denial follows a USA Today report which included shocking images of the mostly empty lunch trays allegedly being served on the two warships.
One image the outlet said was provided by the father of an anonymous Marine aboard the Tripoli showed two trays with nothing more than a small scoop of shredded meat and a single tortilla.
Another image shared by the family of an anonymous service member showed a mid-April dinner served on the Lincoln that consisted of “a small handful of boiled carrots, a dry meat patty and a gray slab of processed meat.”
“The food is tasteless and there’s not nearly enough and they’re hungry all the time,” Karen Erskine-Valentine, a West Virginia pastor told the outlet of what she heard from the family of a service member aboard the aircraft carrier.
A social media user described the “gray slab” of mystery meat in one of the images as resembling the “insole of a shoe.”
Others said the purported meals looked like something “you wouldn’t give to dogs” and “famine rations.”
Caudle’s statement did not directly address the images in the USA Today story. “The [Navy] is correct. More FAKE NEWS from the Pharisee Press,” War Secretary Pete Hegseth wrote on X.
“My team confirmed the logistics stats for the Lincoln & Tripoli. Both have 30+ days of Class I supplies (food) on board. NavCent monitors this everyday, for every ship,” Hegseth continued. “Our sailors deserve — and receive — the best.”
USA Today also reported that care packages weren’t getting to troops in the Middle East due to an indefinite suspension on mail deliveries to military ZIP codes in the region.
The Office of the Chief of Naval Operations indicated that suspension has now been lifted.
“Regarding mail and personal packages, a temporary hold on sending mail into theater, due to combat operations, has been lifted,” Caudle said. “Our logistical network is highly adaptable, and we remain committed to supporting our warfighters as they execute Operation Epic Fury.
“The [Navy] possesses an unmatched logistics capability to sustain operations at sea, and routine menu adjustments are simply how we optimize our endurance to keep our warships in the fight.”
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