halloween: treats only, please.

i'm a bit stressed out about the halloween candy situation this year. there are so many issues for me surrounding candy that i was completely stumped as to what to do.

fair trade
though i knew about the benefits of fairly-traded chocolate (it's fair trade month btw), i was jolted by an article i read in grist, which included this lovely statistic: "...the u.s. agency for international development estimated that about 300,000 children work in the cocoa industry in the ivory coast, ghana, cameroon, and nigeria." this area is responsible for "40 percent of the world's crop." how's that for ironic? here, have some halloween candy that was made by a slave your age for next to nothing ("often earning just $30 to $100 a year.").

veganism
most halloween candy is filled with refined sugar (which has its own issues that i won't begin to attack with this post), oils high in fat and of course, animal-derived ingredients, including gelatin which, according to peta is "...animal bones, along with hooves, tendons, ligaments, and cartilage, all bubbled together in a huge cauldron."

nutrition
with childhood obesity at an extremely scary level (currently 30 percent of children are overweight, according to the american obesity association), how can i feel good about handing out sugar- and fat-laden sweets?

consumerism
i want to avoid adding to the frenzy of consumerism (especially for kids) surrounding holidays, birthdays and celebrations. i've been working extremely hard this past year to make my own gifts, support independent artists and donate to causes instead of giving gifts. the panda that we "adopted" for our niece and the membership to best friends we gave her went over swimmingly.) i know homemade treats will end up in the garbage, so that's out.

don't get me wrong. i love halloween as much as anyone and, as this ideal bite newsletter puts it, i don't want to be "that house" on the block that gives out raisins instead of treats. (plus, my better half would totally veto that.) so here's what i came up with.

since i can't be responsible for what kids are allowed to eat and in the spirit of the holiday, i'm going to go with endangered species chocolate, a company that promotes ethically-traded, vegan chocolate. a set of three bags of dark chocolate with 24 pieces each is 12.75. this is actually cheaper than buying three 24 oz.-bags of nestlé crunch bars. though you can place your order in time for halloween by selecting fast shipping, but you can also find a store near you that carries the brand.

i'm also considering putting together a little tag inspired by this kit that showcases benefits of veganism and fair trade, though my better half's head may implode at the very idea since i haven't told him, but i'm also not carving my pumpkins because i want to eat them instead. how much activism can one household take? yin and yang, i tell ya.

tips:

• remember: fair trade does not mean it's organic and organic does not mean it's fair trade (from grist).
• list of vegan candy.
• what to do with non-vegan halloween candy.
• list of fair trade american chocolate brands, manufacturers, importers, distributors and european exporters.
• peta's halloween recommendations.

image credit: marthastewart.com.