Majority of Americans Plan for a Sweet Halloween

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Consumers are ready to start celebrating Halloween early.

According to a new survey from the National Confectioners Association (NCA), 80 percent of Americans say they plan to trick-or-treat in 2021 and 82 percent plan to celebrate the Halloween season. This includes 93 percent of millennial parents.

Additionally, 79 percent say they plan to fill a Halloween candy bowl this year.

These plans come a year after consumers devised unique ways to share Halloween candy in a socially distant manner, including candy chutes, ziplines and homemade robots, NCA said.

"As the world continues to shift around us, Halloween is a constant that can bring us joy and excitement by helping people embrace time-honored traditions and create new experiences," said John Downs, NCA president and CEO. "The Halloween season has always been about people, traditions and celebrations. Whether people celebrate with a classic night of trick-or-treating or other creative ways of enjoying the season throughout October, this season is all about how we Halloween."

As consumers go shopping for their favorite Halloween treats, chocolate has the advantage. NCA also found that Americans prefer chocolate over non-chocolate in general (60 percent vs. 40 percent). Chocolate is also their No. 1 choice for Halloween candy, followed by gummy candy and classic candy corn.

When it comes to the method of consuming candy corn, 52 percent enjoy the whole piece at once, while 31 percent start at the narrow white end and 17 percent start at the wider yellow end.

To help Americans celebrate the spookiest, sweetest season, NCA has developed a set of resources available on its Halloween Central digital hub, where consumers will find tips on celebrating at home or while going out, as well as safety guidance, history lessons and fun facts.

The National Confectioners Association is the trade organization that advances, protects and promotes the unique role of chocolate, candy, gum and mints in a happy, balanced lifestyle and the companies that make these special treats. It is headquartered in Washington, D.C.