You might begin to see teal pumpkins popping up among the sea of orange this Halloween, and there's good reason for the new tradition.
Each blue pumpkin makes up a part of the Teal Pumpkin Project, which is a campaign that originally started by a local mom in Tennessee before Food Allergy Research and Education expanded the idea into a national effort in 2014. Each nontraditional pumpkin serves as a sign to trick-or-treaters that there is a non-food treat option at that home.
"This is an awareness movement to create a safer and happier Halloween for all kids because Halloween can be a very scary and stressful time — not only for those kids with food allergies but their parents who are worried about some of those candies they might get as they are trick-or-treating," Nancy Gregory, FARE's Senior Director of Communications told POPSUGAR. "Of course kids with allergies want to participate in the trick-or-treating tradition like their friends do and this helps that experience."
With the prevalence of food allergies among children in the United States now at one in 13 kids, there is a very good chance that there is a child who lives near you with a potentially life-threatening allergy. While some parents dismiss the idea of handing out non-food items because candy is part of Halloween fun, it's important to remember that the purpose of this initiative isn't to rid children of their sweet treats. "The goal here is not to exclude candy from the Halloween tradition," Nancy said. "It's simply to try to ensure that kids with food allergies or dietary restrictions for whom candy might not be an option are able to enjoy a safer, happier Halloween."