So, we teach our children where food comes from and what happens? That's right - now got a freakin' vegetarian on me hands <grrr>

[Doodlez]

DS is 10.

Showed him the fish counter at Sainsburys - now won't eat fish fingers, chip-shop fish, prawn toast when we have Chinese...nothing...nada.

Showed him how to cut up a chicken breast to make his own sweet and sour chicken...touched raw meat with tips of his finger tips, blanched and ran from room - now won't eat chicken anything.

Saw egg popping out of a chicken's arse - eggs off the menu.

Can't wait for him to figure out lamb chops.

Now what?

Now you buy a vegetarian cookery book.

good for him

at 10 I think he is also old enough to look up what things he will need for a balanced diet.
he still eats dairy I presume?

I hope he likes beans and lentils :)

I can't

My dad (DS's gandfather) was a butcher for fook's sake...he'll be turning in his grave...or rather, fluttering in his box since we cremated him and buried the ashes.

make the boy a bacon sandwich!

we had this conversation about eating animals with one of mine, we have chickens milling about the garden and the association was made, sadly for the animal kingdom they are all too foody and fond of meat related tasty things to go veggie

Beans and lentils - no.

Brocccccolllllliiii & peas, carrots and sweetcorn - that's about it.

I'll make him eat tofu - that'll bloody learn him.

That's funny. I have a 4 yr old who has refused meat since she realised where it came from - and will not be moved from that perspective, and will now also question other peoples choices! Cue Christmas - 'doesn't eating that turkey make you feel sad Mummy?'
I've got quite good at cooking balanced veggie meals for her though and I think we are all eating less meat now.

Won't do bacon or sausages Cats - he made the connection with pigs - he loves pigs.

We too had chickens - but the fox got them a few months back .

Glad to hear your child has taken the decision to go vegetarian.
If more people did that we wouldn't have a lot of the problems the world has today.

Beamur - he's started on DD with it too - she's only 8 and a fabulous little eater (as was he til this nonsense started). Now he'll say things like "That egg is a hen's period, you know?" just as she's spooning it in to her gob

Truly - I am a butcher's daughter - I don't share your stance.

Gawd, I just thought when we go on the extended family holiday in April, my meat-eating, also sired by a butcher, brothers are going to so judge - so, so judge

Oh dear - that's not a nice image is it!
I'm actually quite proud of my little girl, I think it is a reflection of how empathetic she is and that as such a little one she can have principles and stick to them is amazing. We do still eat meat in the house though and have used the situation to explain personal choice issues and also how farming animals is part of the landscape - if people didn't eat meat there would be no lambs or cows in the field and so on.
In your situation, I would explain to your son that if he chooses not to eat meat that is fine, but he needs to be realistic about his diet - as a growing boy he needs to eat a balanced diet - so tofu it is! I'd be getting him more involved with planning and making his meals too if he is not going to eat the same as everyone else.
He may not stick with this new regime, but I don't find it too onerous to feed my DD - there are lots of things I can make in larger amounts and freeze single portions of for her, or dishes that we can all have but might add other elements to the meals for the non veggies.

Whats wrong with being vegetarian - he has made his own considered choice, which coincidentally has health and envionmental benefits. Good for him.

I must admit I hope my kids don't go veggie, simply cos of the extra cooking it would cause. If they go veggie when they are a little older, they can cook for themselves. It's all very well kids having principles but it just isn't practical to cook 2 different meals regularly. My DH is a devoted carnivore. Luckily DD loves meat and is well aware of its origins. Not so sure of my squeamish DS but so far so good.

Cheers Beamur - I think having a chat about real balanced meals and then getting him involved in some food prep of his own choices is a good idea. His idea of a balanced meal and mine differ significantly!

Cats - nothing wrong with being veggie - just didn't expect to get one of those flavoured children, given my background an'all!

Good luck with squeamish DS, anthony - put this thread on 'watch' - you may get caught out like me and have to refer back to it

I wouldn't make any radical changes to the family's diet or try to force him to eat things he doesn't want to eat. He's just being squeamish at the moment so, if he wants to leave the chicken or the egg or whatever, that's his call. If he enjoyed all those foods up to now, no big fuss is made and he's not designated 'vegetarian' he'll calm down and go back to old favourites.

Almost 20 years ago I became a vegetarian, I was 10 and never looked back. Everyone thought it was a phase but I guess not!

I was very much like your DS and couldn't bear thinking about the poor little animals that I was eating! I just flat out refused to eat meat so my mum gave in & started to support my decision. I don't think 10 is too young to make that decision & it would be better if you could support your son, it may be a phase, it may not but surely it's more important for him to have a mum who supports him in something that is clearly very important to him.

Ps it doesn't need to be loads of extra cooking and work either. There are plenty of meat substitutes out ther that you can give him instead. And it wouldn't hurt for the whole family to eat a few more veggie meals abyway'

I think I'd try not making much of a big deal in the hope that it is a passing thing, but I would tell him sharpish not to make that sort of comment to his sister (we have a no being rude about food rule in my house). I would be so not impressed if either of my children developed new food fads - I've only just about trained them out of toddler fussiness!

Don't let him know where milk comes from if he's that squeamish about food origins .
You can get info on replacing meat in a balanced diet from NHS website, encourage your DS to find meals he can use to develop his own balanced diet.
Would he eat pigeon? Few people have an emotional attachment to those and they are a good dark meat.

Teaching him about a balanced diet is a really good idea, also talking about free range animals, and factory farmed ones, so that he knows exactly what it is that he's rejecting (or choosing to go back to). You will either find that after a while he eats a much bigger range of vegetables and non-meat foods, or he will be so bored he'll start eating meat again. This happened to all my friends who went through veggie stages.

As for other members of your family; whose feelings are more important? Your DS's or your DBs? Your DS needs your support in learning to make independent decisions about things that he feels strongly about. You should perhaps have a word with the other adults beforehand, because nagging and cajoling might well make your DS dig his heels in even more. But if it's not until April, the whole thing may be resolved by then.

Remember, even if you are the DD of a butcher, that doesn't mean that it wouldn't be better for the planet if everybody ate less meat, and it is healthier as well to have some meat-free days every week

Don't let him know that vegetables grow in nasty dirty soil either.... Funny how if a kid announces that vegetables offend their finer feelings responsible parents are advised to ignore them, tempt them with veggies hidden in sauces and basically sort the faddy little bugger out. But 'no meat' and suddenly we're supposed to run around making special food and respecting their deeply held beliefs? .... nah....

that's because you need a certain amount of veg in a good, balanced diet.

meat you can do without.

Kids tend not to eat vegetables for different reasons though don't they? Rejecting meat is more philosophical.
Many of the 'proper' veggies I know stopped eating or liking meat in childhood.