Halloween 2025

October 23, 2025

Halloween treats without artificial colour

It’s no secret that most supermarket confectionery is packed with sugar, artificial colours and ingredients that don’t exactly scream “real food.” This time of year (yes even in Australia), the supermarkets are filled with bright wrappers calling your name from every display.

But we know life is all about balance and Halloween is all about fun, costumes and trick or treat. Most kids will come home with a mixed bag (literally!) of lollies and that’s all part of the magic. But if you want, there are still a few ways to make some better choices when stocking up for Halloween.

One small swap you can make is to choose lollies made without artificial food colours. A UK government–funded study found that certain mixtures of synthetic food colours and the preservative sodium benzoate (211) were linked to increased hyperactivity and attention difficulties in children. In fact, the European Union now requires a warning label on foods containing those additives.*

Here in Australia, this requirement does not exist, which is why it helps to know what to look for. So we’ve rounded up a few Halloween options below that skip the artificial colours but keep the fun.

*Source: University of Southampton