Teaching Children About Meat: 3 Things All Kids Should Know

I’m from Alaska, and I’ve never been to the lower 48, (that’s what we call you, down there) so maybe I just lack proper perspective. I’ve heard some stories overtime that just baffled me a bit. Probably the most notable case came from a good friend of mine who used to be the Navy. He once drove across country with a girl who didn’t know what a cow was. When he explained what a cow was, she broke down in tears and almost had a mental breakdown from the realization that she ate that- often. I once heard of another man who thought meat came from the grocery store, as in they made it there like one would a piece of plastic in a factory. As a parent the idea that my children could ever be so ignorant of a major food source is, frankly terrifying. Someday the world will change, someday our kids just may have to eat food they didn’t just pick up and pay for. They should be prepared for that. A human being that can’t grow or hunt food doesn’t have the proper skills for survival in real life. In light of this, here are three things you should teach your kids about meat.

Real meat isn’t red after being stored.

On the shelves you see pretty pink to red packs of meat in plastic. However, real meat turns different colors as it’s exposed to air. Meat may be brown, purple, and even slightly green and still be safe to eat. Grocery meat is treated with carbon monoxide to keep the ideal color. In some cases, meat is even dyed red. If you happen to get a pack of meat and find the center for example is brown, this doesn’t mean the meat is bad. As meat begins to spoil or is getting to old it will smell slightly sweet. Spoiled meat will have a strong odd odor, and may be slimy or tacky to the touch.

Meat comes from cows, pigs, chickens, etc.

While it can be a hard lesson to teach children, your kid should know what all of the above are, and which types of meat come from those animals. At worst you may have a temporary vegetarian on your hands, but in most cases kids quickly come to terms with our omnivorous nature. From a young age when eating dinner we simply just told our kids, “You’re eating cow” or whatever applied. Later when they saw cows, we reminded them that was what they ate. As they’ve been exposed to this concept from toddlerhood, it won’t shock and traumatize them as adults. Taking your kids to petty zoos or farms can be a good way to ensure the connection gets made.

Humans are omnivores.

On that same note, children should understand the concept of the food chain and where we stand in it. You can teach your kids that they have the choice to choose their diets, but according to science, we were meant to eat meat. The lesson that meat comes from animals can leave some kids feeling guilty. The lesson that we are just fulfilling our place in the cycle of life cancels that. We don’t begrudge say, a bear, for eating a caribou. In the same sense there is no shame in a human eating a cow. This can also be a good time to focus on the importance of balance and not wasting food. Eating meat doesn’t mean you have no respect for life, wasting food wastes life.

Do your kids know where meat comes from?

You may also enjoy:

How to Get Picky Eaters to Eat

Chicken Pot Pie: History, Nutritional Value and a Recipe to Boot!

How to Cook London Broil


People also view

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *