This is a guest post written by Earth Fare Columbia’s Laurie Aker.
Halloween can be boiled down to three things:
#1 Pumpkin carving.
#2 The perfect costume.
#3 Trick or Treating for candy.
Although candy is a Halloween staple, the truth behind these sweet treats can be hard to swallow. Did you ever ask yourself why certain chocolate bars list chocolate as one of the last ingredients? Did you know those little bright tarts and gummies got their colors from coal tar and petrochemicals? We often tend to overlook what truly goes into traditional Halloween treats.
This year, Earth Fare took a stand against artificial Halloween candy and these scary ingredients by hosting a Trick-Or-Trade In. We asked kids to bring in their candy with artificial ingredients and trade them in for all-natural and organic treats!
To sweeten the deal, the Columbia Earth Fare joined forces with the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF) for its first ever “Copper for Candy” campaign. On Thursday, November 3rd, Earth Fare donated one penny to JDRF for every piece of candy brought in.
Throughout that evening, little Trick-Or-Traders visited our exchange table with orange pumpkin pails and trash bags filled to the brim. It was truly amazing to see these kids offer up their treats for a great cause. They traded in apple flavored taffy for REAL granny smith apples! These kids’ willingness and excitement was incredible.
Piece by piece, we counted endless mounds of Skittles, M&M’s, Snickers and lollipops.
Piece by piece, they went into our large wicker collection baskets.
And piece by piece, we raised money for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation.
Thank you to all of our little Trick-Or-Traders for making this all possible! You gave us candy so we could give copper. This year, Columbia truly had a happy, healthy Halloween!
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Columbia, SC collected 8,673 pieces of candy on Thursday, November 3rd between the hours of 4-8pm!
Knoxville, TN (Bearden) collected 12 grocery bags full of candy.
Charlotte, NC (Ballantyne) had enough to fill three grocery carts!
Huntersville, NC gathered 700 pounds of candy!
….and this is why I shop EarthFare
Honestly, I am truly shocked that kids were actually willing to trade in their hard earned trick-or-treating candy for organic treats! Good for them! That’s so heartwarming.
Suzanne
Radically reducing the use of chemicals in personal care and cleaning.