Researchers and advocates have drawn attention to the public health consequences of mass incarceration and its contribution to racial health disparities in the United States. The conditions within juvenile justice facilities may influence long-term health outcomes for African-American, Latino, and Native American populations, who are more likely than white youth to be placed in these institutional settings. Although there are potential health equity implications for improving the food available in juvenile justice settings, limited research is available on the factors shaping these food environments and their potential public health outcomes. This study, conducted by researchers at ChangeLab Solutions, with support from Healthy Eating Research, is an important first step in understanding the food environments of juvenile justice facilities and the policy levers to improve it. The brief describes the four main components of juvenile justice food environments, and the policies and regulations that shape them at the federal, state, and local level.