FDA Issues New Halloween Candy Alert

The FDA has issued an updated alert for children and parents.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in White Oak, Md., on June 5, 2023. Madalina Vasiliu/The Epoch Times

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued an updated alert for children and parents for upcoming Halloween holiday events, targeting candy, costumes, and makeup.

Reiterating older warnings about candies, the agency warns trick-or-treaters not to eat any candy “until it has been inspected at home,” adding that people should check for food allergies.

“Tell children not to accept—or eat—anything that isn’t commercially wrapped,” the bulletin stated. “Parents of very young children should remove any choking hazards such as gum, peanuts, hard candies, or small toys from the Halloween bags.”

Meanwhile, it advised parents to “inspect commercially wrapped treats for signs of tampering, such as an unusual appearance or discoloration, tiny pinholes, or tears in wrappers. Throw away anything that looks suspicious.”

Halloween is Tuesday, Oct. 31, but some children may be trick-or-treating or going to Halloween events this coming weekend.

The FDA warning also said that people should wear costumes that are “flame resistant” and added that they should be “bright” or “reflective” when going out at night.

“Don’t wear decorative (colored) contact lenses that appear to change how your eyes look due to the risk of eye injury, unless you have seen an eye care professional for a proper fitting and been given instructions for how to use the lenses,” it also says.

Razor Blades and Drugs?

For decades, there have been rumors about razor blades, poison, or drugs being placed in children’s candy during Halloween. In some rare instances—like in Oregon last Halloween—razor blades were placed in kids’ candy, and there have been sporadic reports over the years of drugs being found in candy.

Last year, multiple federal officials warned that some types of fentanyl could resemble candy and “some of these deadly drugs are being found in toy and candy boxes.” Others have said that edible forms of marijuana could also resemble candy, although it’s not clear that either candy-like fentanyl or marijuana has been given to children during Halloween holidays in recent years.

Fentanyl pills found by officers from the Drug Enforcement Administration are seen in this handout picture, in New York, on Oct. 4, 2022. Drug Enforcement Administration/Handout via Reuters

“The child may pick up what they think is their candy from trick-or-treating or that parents have to give out for trick or treating,” Bruce Ruck, with the New Jersey Poison Control Center at Rutgers New Jersey Medical School, told CBS News. “But is really parents’ or friends’ or relatives’ edible marijuana.”

Last year, the rug Enforcement Administration (DEA) issued an alert to the public about bright-colored fentanyl pills that appear to resemble candy, which some have dubbed “rainbow fentanyl.” The agency said it was an alleged scheme by Mexican drug cartels to sell the synthetic opioid to younger people and children.

In September 2022, DEA Administrator Anne Milgram told NBC News that there is no indicators that anyone is placing fentanyl pills in Halloween candy.

“We have not seen any connection to Halloween,” Ms. Milgram also told Fox News around the same time amid warnings about the candy.

Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid that has led to a significant uptick in drug overdoses across the United States in recent years, according to federal officials. Some 100,000 people died from fentanyl overdoses in the U.S. between April 2020 and April 2021, and the drug was the No. 1 cause of death for adults aged 18 to 45.

“People see that and they’re like, ‘How could you say that children are not being targeted?’ But the fact of the matter is, in situations like that, mules or dealers or whomever, they’re using these candy boxes as a means to smuggle,” Dr. Stephanie Widmer, a medical toxicologist and emergency medicine physician in New York, told ABC News about candy-like drugs.

She added that it’s “not how they’re distributing them to kids on Halloween,” according to the report. “It’s two different scenarios. I understand it looks bad and I understand it looks scary to see drugs in candy boxes, but people are not handing out candy boxes full of drugs. That’s just not the reality of what’s going on.”