Trouble at Elementary School

“Scary pictures” turned children into vegetarians

Vegetables instead of schnitzel? For some children, a school presentation and the images used in it (not the one above) are said to have led them to no longer want to eat meat.(Bild: Dieter Hawlan - stock.adobe.com)

After animal rights activists visited an elementary school in Lower Austria, tensions are running high: Parents are strongly criticizing the content presented, and the local mayor even organized a farm visit as a counter-program.

A vivid social studies lesson with a critical examination of animal husbandry in Austria—that was the plan when the Association Against Factory Farming visited the Guntersdorf elementary school in the Hollabrunn district. But the roughly one-and-a-half-hour presentation caused quite a stir.

Vegetables instead of schnitzel? For some children, a school presentation and the images used during it (not the one above) reportedly led them to no longer want to eat meat.(Bild: Dieter Hawlan - stock.adobe.com)

“Several angry parents called me that very evening,” reports Mayor Roland Weber. Many of the six- to ten-year-old children had reacted with distress to the images shown and the content presented.

“A highly exaggerated portrayal”
In addition to photos of blood-stained animals, parents say the children were also told that meat consumption in Austria is far too high and that those who eat meat are to blame for the suffering of animals. “The presentation was very exaggerated. Some children still don’t eat meat to this day,” explains Weber.

After the VGT visit, the students from Guntersdorf also visited a pig farm in the neighboring town.(Bild: Marktgemeinde Guntersdorf)

“Cannot be ruled out...”
The VGT rejects the allegations. While the workshops focus on animals and their needs, the content is presented in an age-appropriate manner. During such presentations, the legal minimum standards for conventional animal husbandry are discussed, and relevant visual material is shown when appropriate. “It cannot be ruled out that simply knowing about the prevailing conditions in which animals are kept may provoke emotional reactions,” says the VGT, noting that the reactions of children, as well as those of parents and teachers, are generally positive. “Most children enthusiastically participate in the lessons, engage in lively discussions, are eager to learn, and ask many questions, which are answered honestly and in a child-friendly manner,” explains the organization.

A Visit as a Countermeasure
Because Weber, a farmer himself, felt the information was too one-sided—in part due to the extensive feedback—he organized a field trip for the 45 children to a pig farm in a neighboring town. “It’s a well-run facility. And the students were also told that the animals will eventually be processed into schnitzel,” explains the mayor.

Presentation under review
The Department of Education emphasizes that presentations by external organizations are, in principle, permitted within the framework of school autonomy. However, this specific presentation will be examined more closely. If it was not age-appropriate, it may no longer be used for this age group. A meeting with the school administration is also being considered.