School residential vegetarian/vegan only

[vgp1234]

My child had really been looking forward to their year 6 residential, but a new head has joined and had changed the format somewhat.

They have now booked a Sustainability Centre in Hampshire, which only caters for vegetarians and vegans. My child is not a vegetarian or vegan, and across the cohort of year 5 and 6 only one child is vegetarian.

While I appreciate that there is a view that they can go 5 days without meat and they should just suck it up, I find it incredibly frustrating that you would not ask a vegetarian or vegan child to suck it up and eat meat for 5 days. So I don't understand why we do not treat both dietary preferences with equal measure.

The new head is very keen on government guidance, and has changed our lunch menu to comply with the current guidance for school lunches which is that 3 days should include meat or fish (previously we had a meat and vegetarian/vegan option every day). However it seems this guidance only applies on the school site, so you can disregard it at a residential. While they are within their rights to do this, it does seem like quite a contradiction.

I have tried speaking to the Sustainability centre directly but they were very inflexible and just stated it is a against their ethos (may I add that they also offer a day trip at a cost to visit a working farm, who rear animals for meat, so their ethos does not run all that deep). This really goes against my ethos as not only do I think you should treat all groups equally, I can't help but feel that this is forcing their ideas on children verses allowing them free choice and the ability to hear both viewpoints (meat is unsustainable/sustainable) and make their own decision.

In all honesty I'm quite perplexed as to why the school choose the venue when it would clearly be controversial, as this is quite a personal choice for parents and the cohort has so few in it that have this dietary preference.

I'm sure some people will not agree with me, and I am open to your opinions as I'm a big believer in hearing both sides of the argument and our ability to think critically for ourselves and not be told what to think (I want this for my child too).

I do plan to send the school an email initially and request that they provide a rounded menu including meat. But I'd really appreciate any advice on how to word this appropriately as I'm quite upset by it, and I'd prefer to send a well worded email than an emotional one.

Sorry but this is just crazy.

Even among omnivores, the vast majority of food that people eat consists of fruit, vegetables and grains. Meat accounts for something like 10-20% of the average omnivores diets. Most omnivores regularly eat vegetarian meals (usually at least once per day). Everyone can, and does, eat vegetarian food often, usually by choice and without complaint.

Vegetarians don't, or can't, eat meat.

And no, forcing someone to eat something they are opposed or unable to eating is not the same as not the same as not catering to everyone's ultimate preference.

Its also batshit to think that a 3-5 day spell of not eating meat is some big, life changing hardship, or to whinge about not being served meat at a vegetarian establishment.

To top if off - meat eaters are generally exceptionally well catered for at most eateries, and vegetarians or vegans are usually an afterthought (if that). They'll get their preferences catered to every other day of the year, they should be able to deal with not getting their own way once in a while.

As I know, every vegetarian or vegan will have had sheer nonsense spouted at them. I used to be vegetarian and I had the wife of a friend of DH's tell me earnestly that if I remained vegetarian while pregnant with DS1 she would report me to social services. very stupidly that freaked me out and I stopped being vegetarian. Later when DS1 was a baby, we had a cat net over his cot as one of our cats liked crawling in with him. They were staying with us for a weekend and she became hysterical and told me she would report us to social services for putting DS 'in a cage'. That's when I realised the issue was her being a fucking insane controlling bitch and not only did they never stay with us again I refused to speak to her again.

It's taken 15 years sadly but I went veg again about 6 weeks ago and am loving it. My diet is more varied because i had fallen into a meat and three veg rut. I have a chronic illness and 3 autoimmune diseases and I truly think that many of my symptoms have alleviated somewhat.

I think the OPs problem is that her offspring might decide that vegetarian food is actually nicer than the UPF crap she normally serves up, and wants it at home as well.