Organic re-education
I was truly taken aback last week, when my eleven year old son picked up a packet of Fox’s mini Crinkle Crunch biscuits and suddenly threw them down in horror.
“Ugh!” he exclaimed “these are organic. They’ll be minging! (youthspeak for disgusting)”
The words of the market gardener from my strawberry picking expedition rang in my ears. “Children learn from only one person - and that’s their parents.”
So maybe the buck stops with me. Have I really indoctrinated my children to believe that all things organic are to be avoided? Or is that they have been taught that organic is better for you and have therefore deduced that it must be less delicious? (cauliflower vs. a bag of crisps? An orange vs. a Mars Bar?)
Consequently, I have launched into an organic re-education in earnest. Cereals from Whole Earth (via Ethical Superstore) and a trolley full of Asda own-brand organic items including pasta sauces, spaghetti, curry sauce, nuts and carrots.(interestingly, all this coincided with an article in the Asda instore magazine claiming to now have a range of 700 organic products.)
It seems to me that unless the kids see the packaging, the change has gone largely unnoticed. Step One is going according to plan. No way can I afford to waste money on food that the kids refuse to eat.
Although it’s never a good sign when you check the sell by date on a packet of cereal after only two mouthfuls. The Maple frosted organic flakes obviously have an acquired taste that I have no desire to acquire! Getting out of bed in the morning is hard enough without taking away the lure of a tasty breakfast. (Sorry to the Sams’ brothers - the Red Berry crunch is delicious!!) At least the back of the packet is a more interesting read.
And when I’m sure I’ve won the battle for the stomach, I’ll move onto Step Two, the battle for the mind.
Watch out for the next report from your organic family war correspondent!
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