Is your Halloween looking a bit different this year?

Whether you’re celebrating with a small group of friends, doing some socially distanced trick or treating, or hosting a spooky online event, here are our top tips for having a green Halloween.

Between countless candy wrappers, costumes made of harmful plastics, and decorations which burn a lot of energy, there is no question that Halloween is one of the least environmentally friendly holidays.  If you’re a conscious consumer who feels guilty about the waste typically involved in this holiday, don’t worry! Spooky season can still be your favorite with a few eco-friendly adjustments. Here are our top tips for having a green Halloween!

Get creative with costumes

The biggest carbon footprint from Halloween comes from the millions of poor-quality, fast fashion costumes that are mass-produced every year. But don’t panic! There are plenty of sustainable ways to make sure you have a killer costume.

Instead of buying a pre-made costume, consider reusing or recycling costumes from previous years or even make your own from things you already have in the house. Browse thrift shops, flea markets or gather some inspiration from your own closet: an old prom dress, bowling shirt, or cowboy boots are all the beginnings of great costumes. Instead of a wasteful plastic or rubber face mask, why not try face paint? You can even make your own fake blood; there are various recipes on blogs and Pinterest.  Let your imagination run wild!

DIY Decorations

Decorating is one of the best parts of Halloween but also the most wasteful. As the second biggest decorating holiday of the year in the USA, many of the decor items are made from non-recyclable plastics which are harmful to the environment.

Rather than buying plastic, why not visit your local farmer’s market to pick up some pumpkins and other squash to create an autumnal vibe? You can also carve out your pumpkin to create classic Jack O’ Lantern – always a favorite! Remember to compost your pumpkins, save the seeds from carving for roasting them with a little oil and salt, or use the insides for delicious breads, pies, muffins, soups, and other recipes. If you are in the southern hemisphere (hello Australia!), pumpkins aren’t in season in spring, so why not skip the imported pumpkins in the supermarket and carve out a watermelon instead?

If you are really getting into the Halloween Spirit, why not make your own decorations? You can use cardboard to make a skeleton or tombstones, make spiders out of black pipe cleaners, create ghosts out of old sheets, and repurpose your toilet paper rolls to make spooky bats. You can even put bloody handprints on your windows using red poster paint! And of course, reuse decorations from last year if you have them!

If you do buy decorations, ensure that they are reusable and good quality, so you can use them year after year. And when it comes to candles, be sure to light up your pumpkins (or watermelons!) with soy-based or beeswax candles, not paraffin-based ones. Don’t forget about secondhand options! Check out your local vintage stores or thrift shops for creepy decorations such as candelabras, lanterns, old apothecary bottles and jars, mirrors, and dolls. No cheap mass-produced versions can beat the real thing!

Choose spooky but ethical treats

Buy locally produced foods, candies, and treats. Look for goodies with minimal packaging and/or those made packaged in recycled materials. Look for products with independent certifications such as USDA Organic, CERES, Australian Certified Organic, NASAA Certified Organic, and Fairtrade.

Or better still, avoid all those individually wrapped candies, and make some sweet treats yourself? Cookies always go down well with kids (and adults, let’s be honest), and you can decorate them to make them Halloween themed. Some other tasty treats you could make include Carob Almond Freezer Fudge, homemade Rolo Balls, or Peanut Butter Balls. Instead of wrapping them in plastic or cellophane, you could put them in paper bags decorated with Halloween-themed images. They won’t last long!

Rethink the plastic pumpkin bucket

Instead of using a plastic pumpkin bucket to hold treats in, why not use something you already have? You can use a wicker basket, a regular bucket, or even an old bag or pillowcase that you can decorate and use every year.

Leave the wheels at home

Consider walking to your trick-or-treat destination instead of driving. Walking will help reduce the number of dangerous pollutants we expel into the atmosphere. Not to mention that it will help burn off the countless calories consumed later that night!

So, there you have it! Some fun ways to make sure we are gentler on the planet this year. Get creative and enjoy a green Halloween!

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