Shrinkflation hits Halloween treats

Halloween, a spooky night filled with both excitement and terror running from house to house is just around the corner. With bags full of treats both sour and sweet, everyone has their favorite Halloween candy to eat. Each year Americans buy about 600 million pounds of candy for Halloween and just this year alone sales are expected to hit around $3.1 billion on candy. It’s safe to say going home and sorting through candy packed jack-o-lanterns or tote bags is the most anticipated part of the night. 

Everyone has their personal preferences when it comes to their favorite sweet treats whether it’s sour gummies, caramel filled bars, or fruity flavored candy on a stick.  

“Cookies and cream Hersheys are definitely my personal favorite candy; honestly, anything Hersheys are some of my favorite candies to get on Halloween,” Alianys Gonzalez said. 

Most students’ favorites tended to be chocolate covered candies, mainly brands such as Snickers, Twix, and Almond Joys instead of gummies or hard candy, but it’s no surprise given most Americans buy about 90 million pounds of chocolate on Halloween each year. 

“I love peanut butter, so I love Reese’s, but I know a lot of people don’t like it. I also like Almond Joys, but I know [not many] people really like those either,” Isabella Munoz said. 

Even though chocolate is a trend with students “go to” candies, Reese’s cups were the most popular treat given out during Halloween last year and are expected to keep the crown for this Halloween coming up. However, some of the least favorites seemed to be hard candies and unpopular chocolates. 

“Gobstoppers, Almond Joys, and Milk Duds are definitely some of the worst,” junior Devina Tikkoo said. 

Munoz mentioned she doesn’t like Gobstoppers or Smarties as much mainly because she prefers chocolate rather than hard candies. 

The prices for the holiday have been on a steady rise in the past two years following the pandemic. 2020 was one of the worst years for the candy industry, but sales have been up by a little more than a billion this year. Although most of the reason for this increased spending is because of rising inflation. 

“I’m not surprised the prices are rising because inflation is rising so it makes sense, but it does suck a little,” Tikkoo said. 

Compared to a year ago, Halloween candy prices have risen by almost 13 percent. Some companies are saying prices are rising because the production costs have risen to produce the treats. However, aside from the actual price of your treats, companies are also shrinking the sizes of the candy itself. 

“It’s also not very surprising because inflation is honestly ruining a lot of things and smaller sizes for candy would be one of those things, but companies should be telling this to their consumers because in a sense they’re not getting their money’s worth,” Tikko said. 

Also known as shrinkflation, candy sizes are getting smaller because of how quickly inflation is increasing. Usually, companies either raise the prices or shrink candy sizes, but with how bad inflation is getting some companies are doing a bit of both. 

Despite the rising prices or smaller packaging sizes many people look forward to the horror-filled holiday and hopefully prices will lower with coming years. Either way Halloween still remains a favorable day full of candy and costumes everyone anticipates when October rolls around.