Going green: Eco-friendly fright night family fun is frightfully good idea

Latest article from Angela Terry

Green Green campaigner and consumer expert, Angela Terry, separates climate change facts from fiction and here she explains how you can take simple, practical steps to help save the planet. Follow @ouronehome & visit https://onehome.org.uk/ for more advice.

Q: How can I have an eco-friendly Halloween?

A: From pumpkin picking to trick-or-treating, Halloween is a great excuse to have fun with your friends and family.

But an abundance of cheap costumes, disposable party decorations and plenty of plastic sweet wrappers means that the holiday can have a frightful impact on our environment.

However, there are many simple ways you can make your Halloween green.

Rent, don’t buy

Instead of splashing out on another fancy dress costume made from non-recyclable material, rent a well-made outfit from a local costume supplier.

Local charity shops are also a great place to look for a pre-loved outfit that won’t scare your bank balance.

Swap shop

Get together with some friends and swap last year’s costumes. Or how about creating a costume from items that you already have in your closet?

Save your pumpkin

Last year research by Hubbub revealed that around 35 million pumpkins were bought in the UK with a scary 14.5 million ending up in the food bin.

All pumpkins can be eaten, reducing food waste a simple way to help cut your carbon footprint.

This year don’t just dump your jack-o'-lantern after the kids have carved it, roast your pumpkin seeds and reuse the flesh in tasty soups or curries.

Get creative

Spooky decorations are a big part of Halloween. Try ditching single-use plastic decorations and dig out your craft box.

Go for an autumn walk and gather up sticks, branches, dried leaves and dead flowers to create your own Halloween wreath to hang on your door.

Turn the lights out

To ramp up the scare factor while saving on your electricity bills, switch the lights off and throw a party lit by candles. Look for beeswax or coconut wax candles that are more environmentally friendly and burn slower.

For the perfect haunted house, think about investing in some energy-saving coloured light bulbs to illuminate your home.

Reuse and recycle

If you must buy brand new, look for products that are reusable like felt banners or recycled paper pom poms.

Try Talking Tables, who launched the world’s first recyclable paper party cup and have a range of compostable and recyclable products.

Trick-or-treat

Have a range of eco-friendly treats for when neighbourhood children come,avoiding highly processed sweets.

Take a look at Terracycle, who have drop-off points across the UK to help recycle plastic confectionery wrappers.

Celebrity spot

She’s a fashion designer with a passion for sustainability, Stella McCartney using her runway show at Paris Fashion Week this month to debut the use of regenerative cotton in her catwalk creations.

The process, affectionately known as “shirt to dirt,” is produced in a way that captures carbon within the soil and is good for the natural environment.

Her new spring/summer collection is thought to be the 51-year-old designer’s most sustainable yet with bags made from grape skins.

Green swap

We all shop online.

Next time swap express shipping to standard and opt for fewer deliveries that helps reduce carbon footprint.

Alternatively support local businesses and reduce packaging by visiting your nearby high street.