The SCARY truth about pumpkin waste this Halloween
The different varieties of pumpkin that can be found at the Canterbury patch
Looking for a scare this Halloween? Out of the 39.9 million pumpkins that will be bought for Halloween this year, the charity Hubbub say 22.2 million will end up in the bin.
So what more can be done to reduce pumpkin waste?
George Holdstock has been growing pumpkins for three years at his three-acre patch in Canterbury. He said that the popularity of pumpkin picking has grown every year. But he has made sure that every Halloween, not a single pumpkin is wasted and without a home.
“So the last two years, we’ve sold out three days before Halloween. Any imperfect pumpkins we’ve ended up sending to Howletts zoo, just round the corner,” he said.
This Halloween is no exception for George. Despite this year being his highest ever pumpkin yield at ten thousand, he is confident the patch will be picked clean well in advance.
Imperfect pumpkins will again be sent to Howlett’s zoo for animals to eat. But George does has other plans for them too.
“I’ve got some friends with some pigs and we’ve got a herd of cattle that can eat them as well. I’m hearing mixed messages about leaving them in the woods for the hedgehogs and things like that, because some people suggest it gives hedgehogs diarrhoea. I haven’t had that confirmed either way.”
GEORGE HOLDSTOCK
This year George is supporting Canterbury Food Bank, so any of the imperfect pumpkin varieties that are best for eating will be donated to good use. They’re also running an Autumn market for the local church, so George isn’t in doubt they’ll be any waste.
Hubbub claim that two in five people don’t know you can eat your carving pumpkin.
George said: “An awful lot of our varieties are edible and if you don’t carve them, if you decorate the outer skin and you don’t pierce the flesh, they can last until June or July next year so just keep them in the cupboard for when you want a tasty tea.”
Freya was picking pumpkins at the George’s patch in Canterbury.
“Normally I just tend to bin the pumpkin after Halloween, but this year, I’ve seen so many good recipes on Instagram, so I’m going to try to attempt a pumpkin loaf with the flesh from the inside,” she said.
Hubbub’s ‘Pumpkin Rescue’ campaign is spreading the word about #EatYourPumpkin, aiming to save thousands from the bin this Halloween.
