Photo: Paul Kapischka 

By Laura Durenberger-Grunow - Boreal Community Media - November 1, 2023

The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) estimates that Americans purchase 1.3 billion pounds of pumpkins each year for Halloween. Of this amount, approximately over 1 billion pounds of pumpkins are thrown away after Halloween, which is over 80%. The majority of these end up in a landfill, producing methane, a greenhouse gas that is more potent than carbon dioxide. (There is a common misconception that food products that end up in a landfill simply decompose or compost down, but landfills lack necessary nutrients needed to complete that process.)

Related: Got extra Halloween candy, Cook County? Here's where you can donate it

There are a number of ways to reduce the amount of pumpkin waste that occurs each year after Halloween:

• Compost pumpkins at home
• Check with a local farm or neighbor who has livestock to be used as feed for animals where
• Leave pumpkins out in a garden or yard (being mindful of proximity to homes due to bears) to act as a food source for animals throughout the winter
• Make pumpkin puree and roast the seeds
• Use as a decoration for Thanksgiving (if the pumpkin has not been carved and is in good condition)