True or False - food related

[AimeeM]

Autumn was visiting her grandparents in Florida and they brought her home last night. On the way they stopped to pick up some fresh pink grapefruit for my husband (he loves it). This morning Autumn wanted to try one (she never had). She tried it first plain, then with sugar; she didn't care for it. To me this is no big deal. I'm happy that she enjoys trying new foods. Largely, she is my child who enjoys a great variety of food... asparagus, broccoli, scallops, clams, salads, ethnic food, spicy food, etc. I have no problem when she decides she doesn't care for something because she does, at least, always give it an open minded try (and will happily re-try something she didn't like before). But this morning as she tried it and placed it back on the table, I couldn't help but think of my FIL (whom I love and get along with very well) - he would have had a cow. He is huge on the "don't waste food" mantra; I've noticed, though, that when we visit him, Autumn often politely declines to even try new foods because she doesn't want to disappoint him (he's never mean about it, but the comments about wasting food do make her feel badly).

My 3 year old, on the other hand, is of the first variety - he certainly never wastes food, but barely eats and when he does, he is very picky. When he gets older we will probably have to take a "no thank you bite" approach to get him to even attempt anything other than chicken and peas :tongue_smilie:.

I much prefer (personally) a child who happily tries, but ultimately discards, food.

 

I should mention that we aren't a squeamish family and any food disliked by one is usually had by others (no problems eating after each other here, lol). :D

 

So how about you guys? Do you have kids who fit one profile better than the other? What is the preference in your family?

[amo_mea_filiis.]

I don't have either of your options. Dd will eat most anything, and i'm working to get her to say when she doesn't like something, and to stop eating when no longer hungry as opposed to stuffed. Ds will try very little and rarely finishes what he does like.

 

I would prefer a taster over finisher.

[amo_mea_filiis.]

Double

[Hoot]

I would prefer that DS13 happily try new foods but sometimes waste it; however, he is very much in the other camp. He is always hesitant to try new foods.

[Parrothead]

I'd rather a trier.

[Murphy101]

Why was it wasted? Are you telling me she took a couple bites and then you threw away half or an entire grapefruit?!:confused:

 

To me this is a serving problem, not a picky eater problem.

 

I would have only put enough for a couple bites on her plate and set the rest aside for dh or whoever else I know does like it. If she tasted it and found she liked it, then she can have more. If she doesn't, then all that was "wasted" was the couple of bites she tried.

[Impish]

Why was it wasted? Are you telling me she took a couple bites and then you threw away half or an entire grapefruit?!:confused:

 

To me this is a serving problem, not a picky eater problem.

 

I would have only put enough for a couple bites on her plate and set the rest aside for dh or whoever else I know does like it. If she tasted it and found she liked it, then she can have more. If she doesn't, then all that was "wasted" was the couple of bites she tried.

:iagree:

[LaxMom]

I prefer to have "triers". (and my kids do happily eat a wide variety of foods and cuisines)

 

I'm a little :confused: how one would give a couple bites of a grapefruit to try. (I would just eat the rest because I like grapefruit, but it's not the sort of thing you can just give a bite of... It's either served or not)

[sparrow]

Why was it wasted? Are you telling me she took a couple bites and then you threw away half or an entire grapefruit?!:confused:

 

To me this is a serving problem, not a picky eater problem.

 

I would have only put enough for a couple bites on her plate and set the rest aside for dh or whoever else I know does like it. If she tasted it and found she liked it, then she can have more. If she doesn't, then all that was "wasted" was the couple of bites she tried.

 

:iagree:I'm thankful for my adventurous eaters, but we never waste food.

 

 

ETA: I take that back. We totally threw out a star fruit that no one would/could eat :tongue_smilie:.

Edited July 29, 2012 by sparrow

[AimeeM]

I prefer to have "triers". (and my kids do happily eat a wide variety of foods and cuisines)

 

I'm a little :confused: how one would give a couple bites of a grapefruit to try. (I would just eat the rest because I like grapefruit, but it's not the sort of thing you can just give a bite of... It's either served or not)

I must have been unclear in my post - she tried a couple bites, then placed it back on the table (as in, the entire grapefruit back on the table, from which a couple bites were taken).

[mommaduck]

I was raised in the military with a "try anything at least once...don't knock it till you've tried it" mantra. My stepdad ate dog in Korea. My mother ate squirrel and rattlesnake growing up. We grew up discussing global delicacies at the dinner table (shocked my husband the first time; he couldn't believe we could eat and laugh while talking about monkey brains, how they were fixed, animal gonads, bugs, and snakes). I finally got my husband to try a sushi with raw tuna and salmon (he's almost 40 and we've been together since our teens) and HE LIKED IT! (he was shocked that he liked it; I was not shocked at all...he's been missing out, imo).

[sparrow]

Wow! I don't think I've ever seen a poll at 100%. Who is going to have the opposing view!?

[mommaduck]

Wow! I don't think I've ever seen a poll at 100%. Who is going to have the opposing view!?

We're just too openminded on this board ;) :tongue_smilie::lol:

[AimeeM]

Wow! I don't think I've ever seen a poll at 100%. Who is going to have the opposing view!?

I assumed someone would. I know my father in law never says anything negative about Nico's LACK of trying new foods, but is very vocal about wasting food (even if it was happily tried first).

[mommaduck]

btw, I do have a thing about wasted food, but that just means that I'll eat what my kid doesn't...or I'll pass the leftover to another kid that wants it.

[ThisIsTheDay]

I would vote Other.

 

I would prefer that my kids taste very small portions, given to them by someone else in the family who is eating the food. That way, there's little waste. A child would not be given an entire grapefruit with the expectation it should be finished. If no one else wanted it to begin with, the child wouldn't have the opportunity to taste it.

 

The fault doesn't lie with the child.

[mommaduck]

I would vote Other.

 

I would prefer that my kids taste very small portions, given to them by someone else in the family who is eating the food. That way, there's little waste. A child would not be given an entire grapefruit with the expectation it should be finished. If no one else wanted it to begin with, the child wouldn't have the opportunity to taste it.

 

The fault doesn't lie with the child.

Yeah, a whole grapefruit is a lot. Unless you are my oldest daughter or husband, everyone gets half a grapefruit.

[Murphy101]

I prefer to have "triers". (and my kids do happily eat a wide variety of foods and cuisines)

 

I'm a little :confused: how one would give a couple bites of a grapefruit to try. (I would just eat the rest because I like grapefruit, but it's not the sort of thing you can just give a bite of... It's either served or not)

 

:001_huh: I have no idea how you are eating grapefruit then.

 

We cut it in half along the sides, then scoop out a section with a spoon. If they were giving it a try, we would only scoop out 1 or 2 sections. So 95% of the grapefruit is untouched and completely available for someone else to eat.

[Murphy101]

How to eat a grapefruit. Either method should not waste the entire grapefruit!

[Crimson Wife]

I think a lot of folks in older generations were scarred by food shortages during the Great Depression and/or WWII, that's why they are so big on not wasting food. If you didn't get enough to eat as a kid because it was too expensive (during the Depression) or severely rationed (during WWII), then it's got to kill you to see today's kids turning up their noses at perfectly good (though novel) food served to them.

 

I require my kids to eat 5 bites of new foods. If they like it, they can get a second serving. If they don't care for it, then they are free to have their fill of whatever else is being served.

[LaxMom]

:001_huh: I have no idea how you are eating grapefruit then.

 

We cut it in half along the sides, then scoop out a section with a spoon. If they were giving it a try, we would only scoop out 1 or 2 sections. So 95% of the grapefruit is untouched and completely available for someone else to eat.

 

Well, yeah, that's how I eat/serve a grapefruit. And it's the way I envisioned the OP's daughter trying it and putting it back on the table... I just don't understand how that would be a "serving problem". I feel like I'm missing something... not an infrequent situation here, to be sure. :D

[Murphy101]

Well, yeah, that's how I eat/serve a grapefruit. And it's the way I envisioned the OP's daughter trying it and putting it back on the table... I just don't understand how that would be a "serving problem". I feel like I'm missing something... not an infrequent situation here, to be sure. :D

 

Then I am too bc I don't see how it would be wasteful that way unless after it was put back on the table it was thrown away?:001_huh:

[creekland]

Why was it wasted? Are you telling me she took a couple bites and then you threw away half or an entire grapefruit?!:confused:

 

To me this is a serving problem, not a picky eater problem.

 

I would have only put enough for a couple bites on her plate and set the rest aside for dh or whoever else I know does like it. If she tasted it and found she liked it, then she can have more. If she doesn't, then all that was "wasted" was the couple of bites she tried.

 

:iagree:

 

This is us too. My kids happily try anything and we never waste food. I'm not at all sure why it's an either/or. There's always someone who will eat something.

 

I can't stand food wasted AND I can't stand picky eaters who won't try new things (everyone is allowed to have foods they don't care for).

[SKL]

I would prefer that they sample a tiny bit rather than serve themselves food that they might not eat.

 

Wasting food drives me up a wall, but I'm not a fan of people eating what they don't want, either. I tend to use a "buffet style" method of serving so nobody feels compelled to do either. However, if someone's eyes are bigger than her stomach, I let it go. (Though, they sometimes "feel full" in order to expedite their dessert. Since we generally have dessert only in "company" situations, I generally let it go for the sake of peace, but it does bug me.)

[justLisa]

btw, I do have a thing about wasted food, but that just means that I'll eat what my kid doesn't...or I'll pass the leftover to another kid that wants it.

 

That's what happens here.

 

Unless it's agreed by all that it is un edible.

[black_midori]

I would vote Other.

 

I would prefer that my kids taste very small portions, given to them by someone else in the family who is eating the food. That way, there's little waste. A child would not be given an entire grapefruit with the expectation it should be finished. If no one else wanted it to begin with, the child wouldn't have the opportunity to taste it.

 

The fault doesn't lie with the child.

 

:iagree:

This, exactly.

 

You need an "other"! lol. I don't want my kids to be ultra-picky and refuse to try, but I also don't want waste. Choose the middle ground - give reasonable "test" amounts and see what the result is. I couldn't imagine giving a whole grapefruit to someone as their trial for a new food - what a ridiculous amount of waste! Eeew for grapefruit with random bites out of it, too. Just cut out a small test portion & have her try that.

[Soror]

I prefer ones that try but we generally don't waste either. As pp said it gets passed on to someone else or they are just given super small bites to try. I peel grapefruit like an orange and then take off the member, much more efficient imo.

[AimeeM]

Except that I did state in the OP that food disliked by one doesn't go to waste in our house - somebody else usually eats it (and I stated that the grapefruit was placed back on the table; nobody here minds eating something another has had a bite out of).

:iagree:

This, exactly.

 

You need an "other"! lol. I don't want my kids to be ultra-picky and refuse to try, but I also don't want waste. Choose the middle ground - give reasonable "test" amounts and see what the result is. I couldn't imagine giving a whole grapefruit to someone as their trial for a new food - what a ridiculous amount of waste! Eeew for grapefruit with random bites out of it, too. Just cut out a small test portion & have her try that.

[Calm37]

My youngest will try anything. After 3 picky eaters, it is so fun!

[jewellsmommy]

Ds is a little better about trying foods. Dd not as much. i would rather have open minded triers.

 

If one is trying a food for the first time, they are served a small portion first. If they like it, then they are given more. If not, someone else will is usually available to eat it.

[black_midori]

I'd vote for a poll option of "I prefer they are willing to try most anything new and we do it in such a way that there is little waste".

Edited July 29, 2012 by black_midori

[beaners]

I think a lot of folks in older generations were scarred by food shortages during the Great Depression and/or WWII, that's why they are so big on not wasting food. If you didn't get enough to eat as a kid because it was too expensive (during the Depression) or severely rationed (during WWII), then it's got to kill you to see today's kids turning up their noses at perfectly good (though novel) food served to them.

 

This is an occasional problem when we visit my in-laws. In our case it's serving size instead of novelty. My children are not picky at all. If they say they are full, they mean it. My in-laws will dish out large portions for my children after offering them snacks all day. They get upset if the children leave food on their plates. I've commented that continuing to eat after we are full hasn't done my husband or myself any favors. I'm not going to tell my children to eat when they aren't hungry. My children are good eaters, but you can't expect a small child to be hungry for a full meal after snacking on chips and cookies and treats all day. I also won't continue to fill their plates at a buffet with the goal of "getting my money's worth."

 

I serve small amounts of new foods. I can only think of a handful of those that have been declined. Since it is so rare, I don't push anyone to continue eating something they don't like. I figure any children who will beg for canned spinach, beans and rice, and lima beans must have a good reason for deciding not to eat something.

[Denisemomof4]

Prefer they happily try new foods. Prefer no waste but will never force a kid to eat somethng they don't like.

 

We have a very large menu with unusual foods. My kids eat pretty much everything. The very few dislikes are never forced on them.

[Murphy101]

Except that I did state in the OP that food disliked by one doesn't go to waste in our house - somebody else usually eats it (and I stated that the grapefruit was placed back on the table; nobody here minds eating something another has had a bite out of).

 

Um. K. Then what's the problem? Nothing was wasted and she tried it.

 

That's all good and fine here.

[IsabelC]

I try to discourage unnecessary waste, of course. But since whatever we don't end up eating goes to the chooks to be turned into fresh eggs, and what they don't eat gets composted to fertilize the vegie garden, I don't get as upset about waste as I would if we were just throwing it in the bin.

 

If waste is a major concern, could you just offer a teeny tiny bit of things to taste and let the kid take more if she turns out to like it?