This Is What a Teal Pumpkin Means at Halloween

While Halloween is normally a carefree experience for little ones, some children are affected by food allergies that make the candies in their trick-or-treat goodie bags dangerous. Luckily, there is a relatively new initiative in place to solve this issue—and you can help! This year, consider offering Halloween treats that aren't food. Rather than offering sugary sweets, consider glow sticks, pencils, stickers, or other small toys, which are usually available at a lot of the same places you buy your Halloween candy.

No child wants to have to say "no" to a sugary treat once they're already at the doorstep, but how do you let trick-or-treaters know that you're handing out non-food prizes? The Teal Pumpkin Project makes it easy for everyone.

Brie Passano

What Is the Teal Pumpkin Project?

Back in 2012, Tennessee mom Becky Basalone was looking for ways her son could participate in Halloween activities without triggering his severe food allergies. She wanted to create a visual cue that would let other families know which houses were allergy-friendly, so she placed a bright teal pumpkin on her front porch to signal that she had non-food treats. On Halloween night, she handed out spider rings, googly eyes, and glow sticks while explaining her initiative to everyone that rang the doorbell. Over the next two years, the idea of the teal pumpkin had become so popular that the Food Allergy Research and Education organization officially launched the nation-wide Teal Pumpkin Project in 2014.

How You Can Participate

Let little zombies, princesses, and superheroes know your home is allergy-friendly by placing a bright teal pumpkin on your doorstep. You can either buy one, like this 13-inch plastic teal pumpkin ($12, Target), or cover a live pumpkin with teal paint. Just be sure to display it where it's prominent, unobstructed, and clearly visible from the sidewalk! We've also created a free printable sign and a door hanger you can display along with your pumpkin.

Once you've displayed your pumpkin and hung the signs, stock up on fun non-food treats. You might think handing out individual toys would be more expensive than your typical jumbo bag of candy, but that's not the case—major retailers like Target are making it easy (and so affordable) to fill your trick-or-treat bowl with festive prizes. We've rounded up our favorite affordable Halloween party favors to help you get started. The best part? Our picks start at just $1!

Even if you don't plan to physically hand out candy this year, consider placing a teal pumpkin on your porch next to a bowl of non-food prizes. It's a safe, no-contact way to make sure every child has a fun Halloween.

Non-Food Halloween Favors:

Skeleton Erasers

A 24-pack of colorful Halloween erasers is just $1 (yes, really!) so you could grab enough for a couple hundred trick-or-treaters for less than you'd spend on fun-size candy bars. The erasers are about an inch long, and each package contains a mix of cat, skeleton, and pumpkin shapes.

Buy It: 24-Count Halloween Erasers ($1, Target)

Halloween Bubbles

These Halloween bubble sticks are cute as can be. Each pack comes with eight brightly colored tubes, topped with pumpkins, ghosts, and cats. While candy is quickly devoured and instantly forgotten, a tube of bubbles will provide trick-or-treaters with a fun activity that lasts for days.

Buy It: 8-Count Bubble Sticks ($1, Target)

Patterned Pencils

Pencils are an inexpensive (and useful!) prize, so we'll be filling our trick-or-treat bowls with this set. It contains 16 pencils in eight different holiday designs. Hand them out as they are, or pair them with Target's skeleton erasers for an extra festive touch.

Buy It: 16-Count Halloween Pencils ($3, Target)

Spooky Monster Fingers

Target is offering dozens of super inexpensive non-food treats this year, which means you can stock up on fun trinkets like these skeleton and monster fingers for just a dollar. Kids will get a kick out of pairing these multi-color fingers with their Halloween costumes as they continue trick-or-treating.

Buy It: 8-Count Fake Fingers ($1, Target)

Stretchy Skeletons

If you're looking for something that's a mix of spooky and fun, these stretchy trinkets are the way to go. The skeletons come in a pack of six; each one is about 2.5 inches long and can be stretched in all kinds of ways for hours of fun.

Buy It: 6-Count Stretchy Skeletons ($1, Target)