To think that if the Grimwades had really wanted to ‘go green’, they could perhaps have had fewer children?

[Rainallnight]

Have just seen this ‘Going Green with the Grimwades’ programme on Channel 5. They have six kids are are telling other people about the importance of recycling and reducing waste.

I usually think of family size as a personal matter, but this is all a bit too ironic for me.

AIBU?

I think if you have more than 2 kids, you really shouldn't be talking about how many kids people have.

But for truly exceptional circumstances (not "I have unprotected sex with my bf, no contraception whatsoever and gosh! I've accidentally fallen pregnant all of a sudden unexpected unintentionally"), no one needs more than 1 or 2 kids.

@JaninaDuszejko

Your private pension will be worth nothing if there are no young people to work for the companies your pension holds shares in. I don't know why so many people on this parenting site decide to be so critical of parents. If you want the birth rate to drop speak to the religions that don't agree with contraception or education for women. Those are the big issues that will reduce the birthrate and make women delay parenthood. And don't say 'it's OK for me to go on 4 foreign holidays because I don't have children', it's not an either or situation and children are more needed than your foreign trips .

I’m not saying 4 foreign holidays a year are ok, I’m saying that having 6 children is way worse than this, probably a hell of a lot worse, and has effects for ever as each child goes on to have more. If you’re boosting overpopulation like that you can live like an organic hermit all you want but you’re the problem. No being self righteous about recycling will balance that out.

Absolutely. They should get a time machine and throw environmentally friendly condoms at their past selves, and if that doesn't work, they should build a miniaturising device and jump in between the sperms and eggs to save the planet.

I can't understand why they haven't made an episode about swapping toys or buying second hand. Given the audience!

The one where they reduce plastic by picking their own fruit gives me the rage. Why don't they do something that's more do-able on a regular basis?! Like using a greengrocer or picking up loose veg in the supermarket.

The paper is a fun one off activity, not a lasting change.

However ia probably bu, my 3.5 and 6yo are very into it and want to go litter picking 🤷🏻‍♀️

Just saw this programme

They went shopping in a small independent organic shop. Bought themselves some plastic free fruit and veg. Not sure how they afford to do their weekly shop for a family of 8 if they regularly buy that stuff. The tv show obviously pays well

Each extra child is a carbon footprint of over 50 tons of CO2 equivalent a year. The extra kids are the single worst thing anyone can do to the planet. Each will grow up needing a house, transport, clothing, food, electrical goods.
And do stop with the silly pension argument. If you breed more kids to pay for your pension, they will need to breed even more to pay for theirs, in an ever expanding Ponzi scheme! Sooner or later we need to face reality, make our own private pension provision and leave the state pension as a means tested benefit for the low paid only.

Urgh. They sound like twats.

I don't know anything about this family, but they should totally hypocritical. A bit of recycling is not going to mitigate the impact of having so many children. I think people with large families who preach about environmental issues are just lacking in any self awareness tbh.

Are they all vegan?

@AgentJohnson

Their children will be paying your pension!

I don't think many people under 30 are expecting to get a state pension anymore.

@AgentJohnson

Their children will be paying your pension!

I never buy this argument.

The costs of healthcare, education, public services, child benefit etc will be enormous so most don’t pay their own share back much less that if others. It also assumes every child grows up to be a worker taking no state help which isn’t the case.

I agree though, if set on saving the planet and being green it doesn’t go hand in hand with numerous children.

There was an ad for Quorn mince being sold on the premise of reducing your carbon footprint by eating less meat, that made me feel the same way. Big family sitting round the table enjoying their Quorn spag bol.

The costs of healthcare, education, public services, child benefit etc will be enormous so most don’t pay their own share back much less that if others. It also assumes every child grows up to be a worker taking no state help which isn’t the case.

Also assumes the children won’t ever move abroad.

@CoalCraft

I don't know this show but it strikes me as an unpleasant attitude to think of children as just environmentally unfriendly consumers. Presumably the parents believe that their children will be a net benefit both to them personally through the joy they bring, and more broadly through their contributions to society, and that's enough to offset their environmental impact.

That's not true though If you could guarantee your offspring would develop a new kind of power that runs on compost or something then the net environmental benefits would outweigh the costs but nobody can do that.

@ErrorDetected

Wow this thread is horrible. Yes 6 kids is not good, environmentally, but at least they’re being raised with awareness of their impact and so will have a lower carbon footprint than the 2 kids of families who don’t give a shit and have every gadget going. If they have kids of their own, they’ll probably pass this ethos on to them and like many children of large families, probably have fewer or no kids themselves. Meanwhile isn’t the birth rate in the U.K. below replacement level? I think people just hate being told the truth and will cling to any excuse not to change their lifestyles.

The issue is more the making money out of it and the inherent hypocrisy therein

I think we’d need a lot of people to not have children to even come close to the point of their not being enough people to cover the jobs to support pensions etc. Especially when people’s working lives are so much longer. As a planet I think we could afford not to be replacing everyone with a new person.

I’ve not seen the show but sounds like tripe to me. These programmes never show anything new!

@ErrorDetected

Completely agree

It's all very well being into recycling and buying loose fruit and veg, but it's bloody hypocritical to have 6 children yet have a TV programme about how green you are. It seems this family have focused on the Recycling part of the 3 Rs and forgotten about the first, REDUCE!

I really can’t get het up about people who have lots of children. The mums I know with 6 or more dc are brilliant mums who like children and put a lot of effort into raising them well.
Maybe the people who should be thinking more carefully about the environmental consequences of their sex life are the ones who have the 2 obligatory tick-that-box-before-I’m-30 children, realise they don’t like motherhood and spend as little time as possible with them.

I think the same every time I see this, it's so bizarre.

Also seem very set on reinforcing gender stereotypes.

Apparently they are an family of influencers and have more kids to create content.

They recently had to apologise for pretending to the kids that the baby and been kidnapped, wtf!

Thelegohooverer Completely agree ! Also for everyone with 6 DC there will be other women without any DC (Stastistics women born 1970 ,1 in 6 women childless compared to women born 1943 ,1 in 8 women without DC).This number is likely to increase over time as well.As long as they are happy to be pregnant 6 times over ,Bloody good luck to them!

I really can’t get het up about people who have lots of children. The mums I know with 6 or more dc are brilliant mums...

But @thelegohooverer, no-one is commenting on their parenting skills. The issue is that for a couple who are making money out of being oh so green and environmentally friendly, it's hypocritical of them to be churning kids out at an above average rate.

Ironic hypocritical drivel so pleased to finally realise that my opinions are not just me shouting at the tv

Sorry I know this is an old thread but I just had to jump on.
I saw an advert on ch5 thismorning for a new series of 'Go Green With the Grimwades'. Did a groan (remembering the absolute hypocrisy of that show) and thought 'and I bet they've got another baby on the way as well'.
Jumped onto thier Instagram to find an announcement for baby no. 7! You couldn't make it up!!
Nobody is being unreasonable thinking these people having a show about going green is a total farce...
They are all about making money off thier kids by having them perform on YouTube (and now tv). I would be very surprised if they cared at all about the environment any more than the average busy parent...

Also, I came across this thread because I googled 'the grimwade family are total hypocrites 😂

It's not just the environment either. Six pregnancies, deliveries and ante natal appointments. Six more people. What a drain on the NHS.