How to have a ‘Green’ Halloween

Halloween Pumpkin

Three of the biggest parts of celebrating Halloween, is getting dressed up in a spooky costume, turning your house into a haunted mansion, and if you have kids (or are still a big kid yourself) going trick or treating.

Being sustainable doesn’t mean you have to miss out on all the fun, it just means you have to be more mindful of the planet when you do.

We have put some tips together to help you have a sustainable Halloween.

Decorations

• Many decorations are made from plastic, which are a big no for sustainability. Instead of buying new, try looking in charity shops for those preloved skeletons and ghosts. You might still be buying plastic, but it prevents it from ending up on landfill.
• Make your own decorations from recyclable paper and card. Cut out bats, pumpkins and ghosts to stick around the house.
• Having a pumpkin causes food waste, as technically they are meant to be eaten and not carved for fun. When you scoop out the middles, use the fleshy part to make a seasonal pumpkin soup.
• When Halloween is over, instead of throwing your pumpkin in the bin, chuck it in your food waste bin or compost bin.

Costumes

• Most of us will have an old Halloween costume tucked away in a drawer or in the wardrobe. First of all, check if it still fits and whether you want to wear it, if not, and its still in good nick, donate it to a charity shop.
• If you don’t have a costume, look at what you do have in your wardrobe, you can make a range of costumes from the clothes you have, if you get a little creative.
• If you aren’t that creative and you do need to buy a new costume, firstly ask friends and family if they have anything you can use and if not head to your nearest charity shop. At this time of year, they are full of Halloween costumes.
• If you can’t find an outfit in the charity shop, get online, there are many websites that you can rent a Halloween costume from. Once worn send it back for someone else to wear.

Trick or treating

• If you are still young enough (at heart) to get away with trick or treating or you have little ones, you’re going to need something to put those sweets in. Use a tote bag or a bucket from your home, or visit a charity shop to pick up a pre-loved one instead. You can always decorate them yourself.
• We appreciate that it is difficult whilst trick or treating to get sustainable treats, and we don’t want you or your children to miss out. Make sure you educate your children on the unsustainability of plastic wrappers and make sure if there is any rubbish that it goes in the correct bin to protect the environment.
• Also, many supermarkets now collect the flexi-plastics that are used to make the wrappers, so collect them up and recycle them.
• If you are handing out treats, opt for those that aren’t wrapped in plastic and if you love baking make cakes or biscuits to hand out.

Halloween Treats

Going Green is the UK’s platform for simplified sustainability news and information. www.UKGoingGreen.com