It may not surprise you that Halloween is the No. 1 candy-selling holiday, but what may come as a shock is how much money Americans spend Halloween candy every year.
According to one National Retail Federation Consumer SurveyTrick-or-treaters were expected to take home $3.5 billion worth of Halloween candy this year. Anyone who participates in trick-or-treating knows that no matter how many candies we can eat in one night, there always seems to be some candy left hanging in our household—and yes, that Halloween candy can even expire.
So now that Halloween is over, we spoke to an expert to find out all about the shelf life of candy.
Does candy expire?
Yes, but not in the same way as perishable items such as eggs, chicken And produce Doing. When candy goes bad, it is “almost always a physical (dehydration) or chemical (lipid oxidation, taste change) change and not microbial.” Richard W. Hartelsays a professor of nutritional sciences at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
This means that even though candy technically expires, it’s pretty unlikely that you’ll get sick if you indulge in a few past-expired candies.
“Eating stale candy may not be the most pleasant experience, but it generally won’t cause any adverse health effects,” says Hartel, also IFT’s editor-in-chief Journal of Food Sciences say.
Although Halloween candy technically expires, it wouldn’t make you sick if you ate it.
Do different types of candy last longer than other types?
Yes, but it largely depends on how each type of candy is stored. Although chocolate has a shelf life of about a year if stored at a cool temperature and low humidity, hard candies can last much longer, according to Hartel.
“Hard candies, as long as they are protected from heat and humidity, can last for several years with little to no change,” says Hartel.
However, when hard candy is exposed to warm temperatures and high humidity, it absorbs moisture from the air, he adds. “This can cause a variety of changes, from stickiness to crystallization and loss of flavor, depending on the formulation.”
Chocolate generally needs to be stored at low temperatures and can be frozen. When chocolate ages, it can look dusty. This is known as chocolate bloom.
“This is not microbial growth, but simply a recrystallization of the cocoa butter on the surface of the chocolate,” says Hartel. “It’s primarily a visual problem, although excessive blooming will also negatively affect flavor delivery and enjoyment. Again, chocolate with bloom is not unsafe to eat, it’s just that the chocolate won’t be as tasty as it initially was.”
Chocolate blooming can happen with old chocolate, but it is still safe to eat.
Should you throw away old Halloween candy?
Not necessarily. This is more of a personal choice than a health issue and the answers vary from person to person. It’s up to you to decide if your candy corn or caramel is too hard to eat, or if the coating on the chocolate no longer appeals to you.
“Different people have different thresholds, but a few months would generally be fine,” says Hartel.
How to store sweets
To keep your candy at its maximum flavor, do not store it in an area with high humidity or high temperature.
“For most sweets, cool temperatures and moderate humidity work best,” says Hartel. “If the humidity is too high, the candy can absorb moisture and become sticky, but if it is too dry, the candy will lose moisture and harden quickly.”
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