Travis Barker Reveals Why He Stopped Eating Meat at Age 13

Childhood Dinners and the Pocket Strategy

According to interviews with PEOPLE, a young Barker spent hours at the dinner table because he refused to eat the meat served to him. To comply with his father’s strict rule requiring him to clear his plate before leaving, Barker resorted to hiding meat in his pockets. He spent hours at the table until he figured out that trick, according to PEOPLE. Eventually, his mother discovered the habit, asking him why he continually had ham and chicken in his pockets.

The turning point arrived when Barker connected the meat on his plate to living animals. As a child, he stated he did not realize he was eating a pig or a cow, but once he made that connection, his meat-eating days ended. He officially announced his decision during Thanksgiving dinner, telling his father he no longer ate meat, which sparked his lifelong shift toward plant-based meals.

Plant-Based Advocacy and Business Ventures

Three decades after giving up meat, Barker actively promotes cruelty-free alternatives through multiple business ventures and public campaigns. According to PEOPLE, he stars in a new campaign for Humane World for Animals to encourage small lifestyle changes that benefit animals, such as adopting from shelters, purchasing cruelty-free products, and avoiding animal-derived clothing like fur and leather.

Barker’s commercial footprint in the plant-based space includes his vegan health brand Barker Wellness, his vegan cannabis brand Barker Canna, and financial investments in dining establishments like Crossroads Kitchen. When encouraging others to reduce meat consumption, Barker suggests starting small by replacing one meal a week or visiting restaurants where vegan dishes are seamlessly integrated into the menu, noting that diners often cannot tell the difference.

Family Life and Raising a Vegan Child

At home, Barker maintains a plant-based diet. According to PEOPLE, he shares a vegan lifestyle with his 2-year-old son, Rocky Thirteen Barker, whom he shares with wife Kourtney Kardashian Barker, as well as his 20-year-old daughter Alabama Barker. His stepdaughter Atiana De La Hoya and eldest son Landon Barker eat vegan meals with him several times a week, though they do not follow a strictly vegan diet.

Barker prepares plant-based meals for his toddler daily, noting that Rocky enjoys vegan egg whites, gluten-free vegan bread, vegan butter, edamame, and vegan sushi from MaKin Vegan Sushi in Los Angeles’ Valley. Because Rocky loves animals and books about dinosaurs, Barker expects that his son will independently make the same ethical connection regarding animals that he made at age 13.