10/28/08 Safe Halloween Treats

Safe Halloween Treats. I'm Greg Martin with today's Line On Agriculture. Unsafe Halloween candy is no treat for kids and their parents this time of year. The Oregon Department of Agriculture is offering some common-sense tips to help make trick-or-treating a trouble-free event. It's a treat when Halloween candy and other food items are safe. The trick is making sure that happens. Will Fargo, food safety specialist with the Oregon Department of Agriculture, says one of the first things to remember is to encourage kids not to eat the handouts they get until they come back home. Then it's up to the parents to help out. FARGO: Take a look at this candy and see that it is intact and packaged, that it hasn't been tampered with- there's no discoloration or pinholes or problems with the products. Any time you're suspicious, when in doubt, throw that candy out. With more emphasis this year on healthy and nutritious foods for kids, it's likely that some trick-or-treaters will be getting something fresh instead of candy. FARGO: Fruits commonly handed out trick-or-treating, we encourage parents to inspect the fruit, make sure it appears wholesome, wash the fruit, and then actually serve it to your children instead of readily letting them consume fruit acquired trick-or-treating. There may be more attention on food safety this Halloween given a couple of recent recalls involving candy potentially tainted by contaminated milk powder in China. Any at-risk product has been removed from the shelves and consumers should know that candy purchased this fall is as safe as it has been in the past. Fargo says two major candy recalls this year have raised awareness of food safety and Halloween. Cadbury and White Rabbit candies have been linked to powdered milk tainted with the chemical melamine. FARGO: Melamine in the dry dairy powder has been a problem in China and has been exclusively there. It has not been an issue here. It's not on the shelves in U.S. markets. So parents should not be concerned about melamine or other problems with the safety of the candy. Fargo says giving kids a light dinner or snack before they trick-or-treat would be a good idea this Halloween. FARGO: First and foremost, we recommend- when you send your kids out- to encourage them not to eat while they are trick-or-treating, not to eat candy and, instead, bring it home and let their parents look at it. An alternative to giving out candy can be simple things like small toys that are very inexpensive as well. That's today's Line On Agriculture. I'm Greg Martin on the Northwest Ag Information Network.