Words by Smiley Team
Every Halloween, we’re spooked by our friends and neighbours dressed as ghosts, zombies and skeletons. But what’s perhaps scariest of all is the amount of waste from this one evening.
Two years ago, our Halloween excitement came with 2000 tons of plastic waste - that’s the equivalent of 83 million plastic bottles. “Jeepers creepers!” I hear you exclaim.
But fear not, as there are plenty of ways to reduce this quantity while having just as much fun. To help you, here are some top tips for having a zero-waste Halloween.
Instead of buying individually-wrapped sweets, try making your own. Toffee apples are fun to prepare at home or enjoy decorating some creepy cupcakes. Get more inspiration here.
While it’s quick and convenient to just pop to your nearest pound store, decorating is a chance to get crafty. Rummage through your recycling bin to see what you find. Toilet rolls can be painted black and shaped into bats. Cover glass jars with tissue paper to make eerie Halloween lanterns. Or get more ideas here.
Switch plastic toys and games for zero-waste activities that you can enjoy for free - like a spooky game of hide and seek, telling ghost stories, or watching a scary film.
We buy 24 million pumpkins each Halloween in the UK and over half of these will end up in the bin. So instead, try to buy the smaller, tastier ones that will make a good soup - not just an impressive Jack o’ lantern.
As with clothing in general, the most sustainable things to wear are already in your wardrobe. So it’s time to get creative. Adapt what you have or hunt in your local charity shops for a bargain and design something spectacularly spooky that nobody else will have thought of.
When all is over and done, put all your Halloween costumes and decorations away to reemerge for the scary season next year.
