Editing Mess (section)

=== U.S. Army ===
In the [[United States Army]], officers historically have had to purchase their own food using funds allocated to each officer. In the far-flung forts of the [[American Old West]], officers would organize their food service in two ways:
* "Closed Mess" was when the few officers of a small fort would pool all of their food funds to provide all meals to members only, thus being "closed" to outsiders except as guests.
* In a larger post, the larger pool of officers could allow the officers to purchase meals on an individual meal basis (after payment of a small monthly dues amount). Such arrangements were called "Open Messes".

The mess now is called a ''dining facility'' or ''DFAC''. The Officers' Club ("O Club") is an outgrowth comparable to the Officers' Open Mess, but also providing areas to allow officers to entertain guests. A similar version for enlisted personnel is the "E Club". ''Mess'' also describes the formal affair of having a "dining in", held for military members and closed to the public, or a "dining out", a social event for military personnel and their families.

For much of the 20th century the Army's mess food selection was spartan, but after the end of the draft they changed to a [[food court]] model with more variety including fast food, while also making fast food franchises available on bases. In 2011, the Army rolled out a program known as "Soldier Athlete" which promotes healthier foods including low-fat milk, whole grains, and veggie [[Wrap (food)|wraps]].<ref>{{cite journal|url=http://www.slate.com/articles/life/food/2011/02/chocolate_milk_at_every_meal.html|title=Chocolate Milk at Every Meal|first=Kristen|last=Hinman|date=28 February 2011|access-date=19 January 2017|journal=Slate|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170202001147/http://www.slate.com/articles/life/food/2011/02/chocolate_milk_at_every_meal.html|archive-date=2 February 2017}}</ref>