Do you allow your kids to eat homemade Halloween treats?

You mean from strangers?
Nope. I’m not that trusting.

Yep. It’s safe. All that stuff about poison and drugs is all kerflooey hoax. The one big “poison halloween candy” was a father who tried to poison his kids after he took out life insurance on them.

Strangers or not, @fluthernutter.

If they were friends or neighbors that I know, yes. Strangers, helllll no.

There’s really no such thing as a stranger where we live. The population is too small for anonymity. We let our daughter eat most of the homemade goodies she receives, but some things do get tossed.

Nope. Too many people to trust them all blindly.

Nope. Habit.

Depends. @zenvelo is right that there has never been a stranger homemade poisoning or razor blade incident on Halloween. However, it’s still a little odd in most cases to give out homemade treats, especially in the suburbs and city. If I lived in a rural area and a neighbor who had an apple orchard gave out apples or caramel apples, I would let my kids eat them, otherwise I might throw out other unpackaged items. Again, it would depend. If I knew the neighbor well I would completely trust it. If I would eat lunch at their house, I would also eat their homemade Halloween yummies.

Growing up in NY one of the neighbors used to set up a table and chair in the hallway on Halloween (I lived in a building) and display all her caramel apples she made. We ate those. Each floor usually had at least one adult with their door open or out in the hallway and we kids from a fairly young age went on our own from floor to floor and apartment to apartment. It was tons of fun trick or treating living in a building.

I do not have children but if I did, I would not allow them to eat homemade treats, no. I’m not that trusting and naive.

When I was a kid and I received homemade goodies when I trick or treated, I always tossed them.

If they were made by the host of a Halloween party, or if it were a pot-luck of people I knew, then yes. If they were handed out to trick-or-treaters, I would only allow it if I knew that person very well.

A sinister person could inject any piece of candy with poison. Think about it. Kids wouldn’t notice a pinhole in the wrapper.

No way, there are some sick ass people out there. Why not err on the side of caution? Just not worth it.

Forget poison.
Have you seen Hoarders?

I did. We knew everyone.

Personally, I wouldn’t let my kids eat homemade candy. I’ve been in too many homes with bugs, mice, and unrestrained pets. Of course, it would be different if you knew who gave what, but that’s hardly practical going door to door, especially in the dark.

Thanks to all that have posted. :-)

Most food contains insect and rodent filth.

Allergy sufferers who react to chocolate might be shocked to learn their allergy could be linked to something other than the cocoa bean: an allergy to cockroaches. An average of eight insect parts are found in a chocolate bar and deemed safe, according to the FDA’s guidelines. source & source

How ya like that chocolate bar now?

My daughter came home with two homemade popcorn balls and a bunch of chocolate bars. I’m more concerned about future cavities than I am bug parts.

In all seriousness, @jonsblond, I think there’s a huge difference between bug parts being processed into a manufactured product and bugs having a chance to crawl around on a finished product.

I’ve been in the homes of seemingly normal people where the bugs were so bold they ran the walls in broad daylight. Not that long ago we cleaned out an apartment where the woman had likely been the first tenant in a new construction, and the floor under the stove was black with mouse droppings, they drawers all having some in them. That was out last piano – moved the heavy beast to the auction, then wondered why some of the keys didn’t sound a note: copious mouse nests.

@ibstubro I’m just surprised by how many people are terrified of possible contamination of goodies made by sweet elderly women. Do you know how many people actually hand out homemade goodies? Not that many, and they are mostly handed out by your neighborhood grandma in a nice home. I’ve been trick-or-treating with my kids for almost 20 years in various neighborhoods (my oldest son is 22, my youngest is 10). I’ve covered many many miles.

Do you wipe down shopping carts, elevator buttons, ATM buttons, credit card machines at the check out and the gas nozzle at the gas station before you use them? I have a feeling most people that are afraid of grandma’s Halloween homemade goodies don’t wipe down these items that they use daily. Can you imagine all of the snot, feces and other goodies found on these things? <shivers>

@jonsblond

Why would you wipe those things down? I don’t, not my responsibility to clean them. I just use hand sanitizer after touching those items. Yes, they are gross.

I never really worried about INTENTIONAL poisoning, I mean, I guess it’s a possibility but it didn’t cross my mind. My parents told me not to eat goodies from people that I didn’t know because I couldn’t be sure what was in the recipes or if the person used proper hygienic practices when making these goodies. Many people are gross. I’d rather not risk getting sick, thanks.

Exactly, @seekingwolf. At least twice I can think of I have been in food prep locations when the food prep person reacted to a live cockroach by smashing it under thumb. I wouldn’t want home made goodies from them.

I wipe down my shopping cart. It used to annoy me that at Kroger where I lived in TN they would not load up your cart with your bagged groceries, but the cart that was in front of yours.

But hey, I eat in restaurants and I see waiters bus tables all the time and I doubt they wash their hands each time after they clean up someone else’s dirty dishes and then they serve me my food. It doesn’t matter the cook might have washed his hands. I try not to think about it.

@JLeslie and @zenvelo might be surprised by this story about a Hercules, California child that found a bag of drugs in her Halloween bag 4 days ago.

One of the people in the organization I work for works in the local Health Department. I asked him about restaurants he’s seen, and I made a comment about bugs. He told me it’s not the bugs that are the issue in restaurants. He said if it was just bugs, it would be not so bad. He said the problem is sick employees going to work and preparing food while they are sick. So FYI bugs are not an issue.