Or is school out of order

[mazu]

Dd8 (yr3) while sat at the table spied a box of Nestlé cereal on the table and announced she would not be touching any of it (it wasn't hers and wasn't offered to her). She then goes of to say she would not be buying anything from them as they are horrible people and goes on full blown attack on the brand and palm oil and orangutans. I'm sat there stunned at are very strong beliefs and thought perhaps she's seen an advert on YouTube kids about it.
On the contrary it turns out her at school they were taught about the evil that Nestlé is and that they were told to write letters to the president Mr Schneider to tell him they hate nestle because they damage forests and kill orangutans.

She then spent the entire weekend feeling guilty anytime she has eaten anything with palm oil chocolate, Nutella , bread, crisps I mean everything! She pretty much stopped eating by last night.

While I am up for teaching children about environmental and ethical responsibility at a young age AIBU to feel the school went too far? I made me feel quite angry that they could pretty much teach my child the politics that could shape her entire life and little ones are quite vulnerable and without a balanced view of the facts I do not want this to be the way my child is taught about issues. I want her to read and form her own opinions not spew garbage based on someone else's agenda. Bear in mind the issue here is now the Nestlé as I'm fully aware of the atrocities they have committed in the past.

Agree WolfieFan - and if the exercise has stimulated further thought and discussion at home, then it’s all to the good to help the OP’s DD understand the wider issues.
I really don’t get OP’s problem!

With the utmost of respect if your daughter came away with the idea that 'nestle is bad' but no understanding of why then perhaps her comprehension of what they were teaching was a little off.

Maybe it is an opportunity for you to do your own research with her?

I happen to agree that if the children are sending letters to third parties that it would be nice if the parents were informed of this prior to them being sent if they include personal details. If it was a blanket letter under the schools name then not so important.

So the school isn't teaching the issue in quite the way you would have chosen to,and you've had to discuss it more at home.
Sounds ok to me.
You don't know,as PPs have said,what was actually in the lesson,only what your DD took from it - my DD is very literal and finds it hard to see the whole picture ,her take home message from one sex education lesson was "if you have sex you'll die".I'm 100% sure that wasn't the key message of the lesson.....

I’d be delighted that my children’s school was helping her develop a political and social consciousness.
Nestle don’t listen but will reply with a standard we don’t do any harm letter. Consent isn’t necessary to write a letter; it’s not surgery. Schools don’t have to check out every activity with parents beforehand.

Nestle has an appalling attitude to the world and mine learned from the prom to avoid all Nestle products. They are a vast multinational so it’s not always easy but I won’t knowingly give their products, or those of their subsidiaries, houseroom. I boycott because their refusal to follow WHO guidelines on the promotion of breast milk substitutes to the developing world. I’m equally saddened that they are also ripping our rainforests apart. The next generation will hopefully protect the world better than we have.
You are being entirely unreasonable.

I don't think school were being unreasonable but we are a household that boycotts Nestlé and Nutella etc so perhaps biased.

Presumably dd doesn't have much of her own money anyway so you can agree that she needn't spend her own money on these products. You however get to make your own decisions and can continue to shop according to your own priorities. Make sure there's plenty of fruit and veg available at all times and she won't starve if she declines to eat anything unethical. I suspect that it won't be long before she starts to develop a pragmatic attitude to how difficult it is to live truly ethically and will compromise from the idealistic position she started at. Let her find the balance that she can live with.

I think I'm more miffed about the letter writing to a large corporation

You want the school to get your consent for every context they use to illustrate a piece of work? YABVVU. Just home school from now on.

The level of control you want is not normal and you won't be able to maintain it unless you control all her access to information (as you have realised).

Yabu, sounds like they've watched the Iceland advert. You should be very proud of your dd.

Yabvu, but your dd is brilliant.

I agree with PPs that it sounds like your DD is seriously thinking things through and I would be very proud of her. And I would be pleased with the school for encouraging this. I don't really understand what your issue is. The school have mage her start thinking about issues of deforestation and climate change, and palm oil, and you have discussed it with her further at home. That's how it should be.

Being balanced doesn't mean finding pros as well as cons for a subject it means treating the evidence fairly and objectively.
Some things can't be balanced and come out neutral.

Honestly, I think I'd be more concerned about your child's diet, you say she's pretty much stopped eating then list Nutella, bread, chocolate and crisps. Why is she not able to have healthy food? You know, vegetables, fruit, meat, cheese, eggs, dairy etc.

You then say the cereal was yours and she hadn't been offered any. This is just odd. Cereal is generally for the house, it's not this is mine and you're not allowed any unless I offer them to you.

It would seem there are bigger issues at play and it's unhealthy diet and odd turf protectiveness over shite food.

I havent bought Nestle products in 30 years due to thier despicable practices re promoting sub standard baby milk in 3rd world countries and supporting illegal whaling under the guise of 'science' never mind palm oil.

I would be glad the school are making kids aware of big companies and thier lack of ethics. Kids are the future maybe they can stop the destructuon of our planet and bring morals back into business.
Wish they would do it with coke a cola too.

Op you know Nestle is a rotten company yet you still support tjem by buying thier products. Your dd appears to have a better moral back bone than you.

I love your school! Palm oil production reaps havoc in areas kids dont usually see of even know about. Weaving that into curriculum activities is great. Gets kids thinking politically (small p) about their decisions. I have boycotted nestle since the baby food scandal. Your school sounds like it has the radical think outside the box teachers we need more of. Bravo school!
And yes, palm oil is usually in shit and easy and cheap to avoid.

Having looked up a lot on sustainable palm oil I now just avoid it.
I remember when dd was in primary school the rainforest project.one entire wall of the classroom was turned into jungle,toy animals that the children brought in tlike monkeys were arranged around.They did projects Inthe animals,plants climate.
Then they went to school one day and half their forest was gone and all the animals.
They then covered deforestation,threats to animal life.
It was fantastic,I hope that's her did it each year for new sets of children.
It's a shame the OP school didn't cover more just one company
OP used it as a wider discussion point but many parents wouldn't or can't.

And I doubt they'll really be sending letters to Nestle, more a lesson in persuasive writing, and a good one too.

. I did ponder when putting this thread together whether to out them or not as I know that anything with said company's name quickly loses any objectivity. That said you are all absolutely correct palm oil cultivation is a huge issue. Which is what I wanted DD to have latched on rather than JUST the said company's insidious reputation.^

But you said in your OP that it was the rainforest deforestation, palm oil and the orang utans that your DD was concerned about. That’s why she was angry with Nestle. You mention it twice - they write on that specific issue to Nestle.

So the rest of their reputation (baby milk products etc) is neither here not there to your DD. And yes, avocado farming has issues, as does Peruvian asparagus and all sorts of stuff.

Buy local and seasonal. Try to avoid processed and pre-packaged food.

She didn't come away thinking palm oil was bad but just the company.

But you said that after the cereal incident she was then feeling guilty about eating anything with palm oil in it - crisps etc and would hardly eat anytjing. Surely not all the foid in your house is made by Nestle!

One of my teachers once told me that the company cheaply obtained coffee beans from Africa and then flogged them nestcafe in return. When I started to drink coffee myself......

Yabu. Good on the school for instilling some social conscience in the children. Nestle are evil!

Tbh I think the school have done a good job . I don’t know anyone who would say Nestle are an ethical company.

Maybe your Dd passions are a lesson to you . The more people that boycott Nestle the better.

I myself am really just learning about palm oil so would love my Ds to be taught this information.

He is been taught about plastics and damage to the environment. I welcome this . We really have to teach our children to take care of the planet better than we have.

We have boycotted Nestle in this house for years. Ever since they were tiny my kids knew that we didn't have their products because of their highly unethical infant milk marketing.

Nestle isn't alone in the palm oil. We don't but Cadbury's chocolate any more because the palm oil has turned it to shit.

The school aren’t teaching her about the company. They have used a certain information as a stimulus for persuasive writing. They have chosen this subject precisely because it’s emotive and “current”.
Exactly this.
I don't understand the issue.
It's a bit like looking for some pearls to clutch.

Am a bit surprised that your DD's school did not send out the term's writing activities/assessment items at the start of term. Seeing how relentlessly accountable the UK system is, how did you not know about this until now?

Oh, welcome to MN, mazu.

I really don’t get your issue. School introduced her to an issue and you were able to use that as a springboard for further debate. What’s the problem?

I also think your protestations that she wasn’t taught extensively enough about palm oil ring a bit hollow when you clearly use lots of nestle / palm oil products. It’s obviously not a priority for you.

Yes nestle have some very good questionable ethics; those who say thet avoid their products, could I also suggest you check cosmetics/ hair products; nestle are responsible for about 2000 brands including non food....