How Green is Halloween?
jeff_golden
So we have come again to the holiday that brings out the black and orange in us greenies. In the interest of scaring ourselves, let us examine just how monster-ous the candy, costumes, and accompaniment are (or are not?) for the environment.
In the “evil” column is sugar, sorry to say. Sugar is one of the parts of our diet that we should consume less of, not more- not just for our own health but for the planet’s. A Swedish study found that, and suggested cutting our intake by 50%. Not what we want to hear on Halloween.
But in the “good” column, there are the possibilities of chocolate. It’s a mixed treat bag- while chocolate has a higher carbon footprint than foods like fruit or bread, that comes mainly from the milk. Which makes those of us who know that dark chocolate is way better anyway feel like little angels. So the recommendation is: buy dark chocolate, and look for sustainably grown brands- while many cocoa producers have cut down rainforest to plant chocolate, those who use co-forestation techniques are rapidly gaining notice.
There are more eco-friendly candy tips here, but short of going to Goodwill for your costumes and trying to find a pumpkin that hasn’t traveled hundreds of miles to get to you, Halloween can be tricky. Assuage your guilt by only providing those individually-wrapped candies to trick-or-treaters, and provide guests and family with fresh cookies or other treats (perhaps made from scratch!).
And remember- as soon as your orange and yellow come off, think green!
Loading ...
Halloween is a great time to educate others about the importance of being a better educated, more conscious world citizen. Always create your own costume from used materials–this reduces your environmental impact and helps to expand your imagination!
In addition to negative environmental impacts of chocolate production, there are human costs too. A recent documentary, The Dark Side of Chocolate http://www.thedarksideofchocolate.org/ exposes child slavery practices in cocoa production. Always buy fair trade and learn more about what you consume.
And create new traditons that aren’t so focused on overconsumption of sugar. Learn about and participate in your own Day of the Dead celebration, a Mexican celebration of deceased ancestors. Or have a seance. Or go to a farmers market and cook a new recipe to celebrate the fall harvest. Think outside the box.