Story at a glance
- 1 in 13 kids have a food allergy, making traditional Halloween treats a potential threat.
- Teal pumpkins are painted the color of food allergy awareness.
- More than 33,000 homes across the country participated.
- Families offered non-food treats like stickers, play dough and glow sticks.
Teal is not a very spooky color, and that’s the point. This year, a nationwide campaign called the Teal Pumpkin Project gained real traction online aiming to make Halloween less frightening for kids with food allergies. Homes displaying teal pumpkins provided a non-food option alongside Halloween treats.
The Teal Pumpkin Project was started in 2013 by a local food allergy community group in eastern Tennessee, NPR reports, and is now supported by a national organization, Food Allergy Research & Education, or FARE. The groups chose the color teal because it’s the color of food allergy awareness. FARE estimates that 1 in 13 children has a food allergy, and the most common allergies are eggs, milk, peanuts, tree nuts, wheat and soy. For kids with allergies, that puts a lot of Halloween candy off-limits. Those who still want to trick-or-treat have to find other ways to enjoy the evening.
Hillary Carter, whose two sons have serious food allergies, swapped candy for “tricks” so that they could still participate. “They go through the act of trick-or-treating,” Carter told NPR. “They can participate like everyone else but know not to touch the candy.”
At houses with teal pumpkins, children with allergies know they won’t have to leave empty-handed, and parents know they don’t have to micromanage their kids’ treat choices. FARE’s website includes a map where families can mark their address as a teal pumpkin participant. More than 33,000 homes were registered this year, but FARE CEO Lisa Gable told NPR that she suspects the actual number was much higher.
“Anything we can do to teach the community about food allergies will make the world a safer place for my kids,” Carter told NPR.
If you want to participate next year, non-food treats might be stickers, tubs of play dough, notebooks or freebie toys collected over the past year from kids’ meals. Halloween-y treats like vampire teeth or glow sticks are also a hit.
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