Guide Note

Halloween Candy, given out to trick-or-treaters, can be candy in any form, but typically includes mass-produced Halloween-themed candy, such as Candy Corn, or miniature versions of non-seasonal candies. While it was once a common custom to give out homemade Halloween candy, this tradition has largely been discontinued due to safety concerns.

Fast Facts

1. Halloween: October 31
2. Most popular: Candy Corn
3. Hershey's chocolate miniatures are popular

Since the early 1980s, reports have surfaced of poison-laced or razor blade-laden candy. Some parents around the US have subsequently required their children throw out any of their trick-or-treating yield that is not factory-sealed. Hospital x-ray departments began offering free services on and after Halloween, in order to check for harmful objects embedded in candy. Though these concerns and practices remain common, some of the original reports of tampering have been debunked as urban myths.¹