Before Halloween, Check the Candy Bag: FDA Food-Safety Tips Cover Wrapper Inspection, Allergen Labels and Choking Hazards
With Halloween (October 31) approaching, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) holiday food-safety tips focus on what happens when children bring their candy home. The FDA says children should eat a healthy snack or meal before heading out so they are not tempted to nibble on the way, and that treats should be inspected at home: accept only commercially wrapped items, and throw away anything with torn wrappers, tiny pinholes, an unusual appearance or discoloration. Homemade treats from strangers should not be accepted or eaten.
Allergen labels are the second checkpoint. The FDA requires most packaged foods to disclose the nine major food allergens: milk, egg, fish, crustacean shellfish, tree nuts, wheat, peanuts, soybeans and sesame. Food Allergy Research & Education (FARE), which relaunched its Teal Pumpkin Project for 2026 on September 22, warns that miniature and "fun-size" candies may be made in different facilities, use slightly different formulations, or arrive without ingredient labeling, so a candy a child has eaten safely before should not get an automatic pass. "A food product's ingredients can be changed at any time," FDA food technologist Carol D'Lima said. "Check the label every time you buy the product, even if you have eaten it before and didn't have an allergic reaction."
For very young children, the FDA advises removing choking hazards such as gum, peanuts, hard candies and small toys. For Halloween parties at home, the agency says to serve only pasteurized juice or cider, since unpasteurized products can contain harmful bacteria such as Salmonella or E. coli; not to taste or serve raw cookie dough made with uncooked eggs or raw flour; and to keep perishable foods such as finger sandwiches, cheese platters and cream pies chilled until serving, discarding items left out for more than two hours.
Costume safety is also on the FDA's list: choose costumes labeled "flame resistant," wear bright, reflective outfits or add reflective tape, use makeup instead of vision-blocking masks and test makeup 24 to 48 hours in advance, and avoid decorative colored contact lenses sold without a prescription because of the risk of eye injury.
Source: GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 万圣节装扮与糖果活动（资料图）。图：美国空军一等兵 Jessel Fabara 摄，公共领域，经维基共享资源。 / File photo: a Halloween costume and candy event. Photo by U.S. Air Force Airman 1st Class Jessel Fabara, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
