The Frightful Truth About Halloween Pumpkins
Language
Reading Level
Listen to Article
Every October, families rush to pumpkin patches to pick out the perfect gourds. Some use them to carve spooky jack-o'-lanterns, while others place them outside their homes as decor. Unfortunately, the fascination with the colorful fruit fades once Halloween ends, and most pumpkins end up in the trash.
A 2020 poll conducted by the UK-based non-profit Hubbub found that over fifty percent of the 24 million Halloween pumpkins that British citizens bought that year were destined for the landfill. Things are no better in the US, where about a billion pounds of pumpkins get tossed out and left to rot in landfills annually. In addition to the massive amount of food waste generated, the rotting fruit also emits large amounts of methane — a greenhouse gas even more potent than carbon dioxide.
Fortunately, this pollution problem is easy to solve. We can all help eliminate the food waste by keeping the edible portions of the fruit during carving. Roasted pumpkin seeds make a nutritious snack, while the flesh can be transformed into a delicious soup, a tasty puree, or a lip-smacking pie.
Once Halloween is over, drop your jack-o'-lanterns at a local compost collection center if possible. Better still, see if your city or town hosts a pumpkin smashing event and have fun tossing yours on the ground with your friends. Don't worry, the remains will be collected and composted once all the gourds have been smashed.
There are many other ways to ensure the fruit does not end up in landfills. Fill your hollowed-out pumpkins with grains and leave them in the yard or hanging from a tree for birds, squirrels, and other garden critters to enjoy. If your pumpkin is too far gone to salvage, bury it in your backyard — your garden will be all the happier for it.
Have a safe and sustainable Halloween!
Resources: sciencealert.com, theatlantic.com, hubbub.org.uk
Get the Workbook for this article!
Workbook contains: Article, Reading Comprehension, Critical Thinking Questions, Vocabulary in Context (+ answers), Multiple Choice Quiz (+ answers), Parts of Speech Quiz (+ answers), Vocabulary Game (+ answers)Cite Article
Learn Keywords in this Article
220 Comments
axstheticlyover 3 yearsPumpkins!!!
xx_hamilton0714over 3 yearsI didn't get to carve pumpkins either, which is sad because that's one of my fave parts about Halloween. I didn't even get to go trick-or-treating! :(
catsarecute123over 3 yearsYum I love roasted pumpkin seeds
lollipopsaholicover 3 yearsThe best thing to add to pumpkin pie is cinnamon and caramel. It's amazing!
bagicozu-163360975768over 3 yearsMan, I wish I got to trick or treating this year! But maybe and most likely I will go next year!- bagicozu-163360975768over 3 yearsI can't believe that many pumpkins go in the trash! Plus you could make a lot of things with pumpkins there is no need to throw them away!
rogue_warriorover 3 yearswow thats sad after halloween they just throw the pumpkin away
adahmiover 3 yearsI think it's sad that all of that food gets wasted. You can make soup, muffins, bread, and roasted seeds from the pumpkin. My mom likes to make roasted pumpkin seeds. All she puts on them is olive oil, salt and pepper. It's delicious! Now I'm hungry.
voltage12over 3 yearsWe always make pumpkin seeds from our Halloween pumpkins UNLESS they are ROTTEN because animals eat them so we throw the leftovers away from the animals.
purplepearlsover 3 yearsI got sick on the night I was supposed to go trick-or-treating. :(
emmatpnover 3 years@foomillon don't be sad just ask your mom or dad to go have fun but it is so much fun!!!!