Who isn’t waiting for October 31st to arrive? Trick-or-treating, pumpkins, scary stories, costumes, parties. A lot of fun! But have you ever thought about the amount of waste that this single holiday generates? It’s easy to think only of how much money is being spent on Halloween. Every year, US consumers spend about $10.14 billion on Halloween-related items. That’s a lot! But the impact on the environment is also significant. Think about all the waste that comes from candy wrappers, costumes, and decorations. But don’t panic, a sustainable Halloween is possible! Your Halloween can be green and friendly both to your wallet and the planet.

You may be a conscious consumer or someone who feels guilty about the waste generated during the holidays. Or you may only notice it after reading this post. There are a lot of tools and adjustments you can make to enjoy a sustainable Halloween. It will take some effort and work, but we assure you that it is worth it.

Let’s begin with the decorations. To celebrate a sustainable Halloween, try to avoid the big stores. Think about it, you use all of it for a year and then throw all of it in the garbage! Pumpkins are a very good place to start. Try to buy them from local farms or farmers’ markets. 

We recommend you then carve them out to make a classic Jack O’Lantern! You can keep the seeds and flesh to eat later. Or you can donate them to your local zoo, community garden, or animal shelter. You can even compost them and plant the seeds to grow for next year! This is a great place to start with your sustainable Halloween. There is no Halloween without pumpkin carving so make yours sustainable.

For the decorations, always remember the basics of sustainability. Reuse instead of buying. And, if you have to buy, ensure that the decorations are good quality and will be able to reuse them the next year. Or, why not try some second-hand options from vintage stores? You can turn any old item into creepy decorations for your sustainable Halloween.

If you have decorations from last year, bring them out. If not, create your decorations to kickstart your own sustainable Halloween. There are a lot of great ideas for this! Stockings can be turned into spider-webbings; cardboard boxes will make excellent tombstones; toilet paper rolls can be easily transformed into spooky bats. 

And there is a lot more! You can make ghosts out of old sheets, or spiders out of black pipe cleaners. Are your kids going trick-or-treating? Try to find something you have at home for them to take to hold treats in and decorate it. It can be a bucket or a pillowcase, you can even use a watering can.

As for the treats, you have different alternatives for a sustainable Halloween. Take into consideration the importance of nutrition, sugar percentage, sustainable sources, and packaging. Look for more healthy, natural treats, from companies that are certified and green. You can also look into local markets. Or why don’t you make some sweet treats yourself? You can bake some cookies and decorate them, or muffins, or cake-pops. Instead of wrapping them in plastic, you could keep them in paper bags.

Did you know that the biggest carbon footprint from Halloween comes from costumes? For this sustainable Halloween consider making your own. You can use old clothes as good pieces or parts. You can also look for fabrics at thrift shops or consignment stores. Use your imagination to create an amazing homemade costume!

When having a party, avoid single-use plastic cups, cutlery, and plates. Either use regular dishes or biodegradable or recyclable ones. You can also encourage your guests to bring their cups decorated and reward the most original ones!