Halloween and Food Allergy Concerns

Halloween is just around the corner, find out how your fellow consumers are dealing with holiday treats and food allergies

It can be said that most parents are affected in some way by food allergies – whether it’s their child directly or their child’s classmates, there is no escaping the dangers of food allergies. In fact, only 16 percent of the SupermarketGuru consumer panel said there was no concern for food allergies in their household.

With the spooky holiday just around the corner, The Lempert Report surveyed the SupermarketGuru consumer panel to find out how they were planning to deal with the upcoming parties and especially trick or treating and food allergies.

One third of consumers said they were purchasing Halloween candy as usual because for them food allergies were not an issue; to the contrary just over a quarter of consumers said they will be purchasing a combination of regular candy and allergen-free candy in case they encounter a child with food allergies. Surprisingly a similar amount said they would only purchase allergen-free candy.

But there is a catch! The majority of shoppers said they are not aware of allergen-free candies – and for that reason 89 percent of respondents say they would like stores and manufacturers to make it clearer which candies are allergen-free – preferably directly on the package.

So what are parents planning to do at Halloween parties? Forty six percent feel that schools and private parties should be careful to make sure allergen-free foods are provided and clearly designated, while less than 40 percent feel that it is the parents and food-allergic child’s responsibility to make sure they do not consume foods that may be threatening. Only thirteen percent feel common allergens should be banned from parties and school functions.

And on that note – don’t forget the annual SupermarketGuru Halloween costume contest- all you have to do is post your picture of you dressed up as food or a food related costume on our Facebook fan page, SupermarketGuru.