Do You Know the Label Reading "Tricks" to Make Sure Your Halloween "Treats" Are Safe?

Halloween candy may present health risks to children with food allergies. Some parents choose to #KeepItTeal and encourage non-food treats. Teal, the color of food allergy awareness, signals a safer Halloween for all.

If you allow candy, you must read the full product label every time. If an item does not have a label, do not let your child eat it even if it's something they have eaten safely before. Below are some label reading tricks to help make sure treats are safe for your child. One way to make trick-or-treating safer is to trade your child's candy for safe treats or non-food treats.

U.S. law requires most foods to list eight major allergens on a label: milk, soy, egg, peanut, tree nut, wheat, fish, and crustacean shellfish.  This law does not regulate or require "may contains" advisory statements.

Trick #1: Different varieties of the same candy may have different ingredients

When this happens, it is easy to confuse two varieties of candy for each other. This can also happen with seasonal or holiday varieties of candies.

Tic Tacs® do not normally contain milk. The holiday Candy Cane version contains milk.

Trick #2: Different sizes of the same candy may have different ingredients or advisory labeling

Candy that comes in large and “mini” sizes may have different ingredients.

The large size Laffy Taffy® contains egg as an ingredient.

The smaller size Laffy Taffy does not have egg on the ingredient list, but it does have soy lecithin that the larger size does not.

Different size candies can be produced on different lines with different potential for cross contamination.

Hershey's adds an advisory label when there is a concern about cross contamination with allergens. Their full-size bar does not have any warning. Their snack size bar has advisory labeling that it processed on the same equipment as almond.

Trick #3: Different packages of the same candy may have different labeling

Companies may have different facilities that process different allergens. Trolli® Sour Bite Crawlers have different labels because they are made in different facilities. Ferrara Candy Company said the labeling depends on where the candy is made.

The 30.4-ounce bag does not have a "may contain" statement. The label for the 22-ounce bag has an advisory statement about other allergens in the facility.

This can also happen with individual packages that are not labeled for resale. The outer package of this Trolli mix states that all of the products are made in a facility that processes allergens.

Some of the individually-packaged items in the mix have the advisory statement on the label while other items do not. Always be sure to check the information on the outer package.

Trick #4: Individually-wrapped treats can be packaged in a larger bag - make sure the inner and outer labels match

The outer package of Black Forest Organic™ Gummy Mix says that the package contains Gummy Bears, Gummy Worms and Gummy Bats. The package actually contains Sour Heads and not Gummy Bats.

The ingredients for the Sour Heads are not on the outer package or on the individual package. The ingredients for the Gummy Bears and Gummy Worms are on both the outer package and the individual package.

Trick #5: Re-packaged candy may have different labels than the candy made and sold directly by the company

Candy can be repackaged by other companies to make assortment packs. The allergen statement may change because the packaging company processes different allergens than the original candy maker. This is important because you will not know what kind of package the candy has come from unless you purchase it yourself.

Both Smarties® and Dum Dums® are free of major allergens.  The labeling on this package indicates what they are free from.

A different assortment that includes Smarties says that all the candy was processed in a facility that does have allergens.

Dum Dums® packages state their pops are free of the major allergens. However, their candies may get re-packaged by other companies. Spangler (the maker of Dum Dums) has information on their website about how to tell if your candy was bagged directly by Spangler or repackaged by another company.

Treats: Some companies go the extra mile for families with food allergies

Some packages will say they are made in an allergy-friendly facility. 

Updated September 2018