The FPIES Foundation Joins with Food Allergy Research & Education In Support of the Teal Pumpkin Project® This Halloween

The FPIES Foundation is pleased to announce its pledge of support for the Teal Pumpkin Project^®, a worldwide movement to create a safer, happier Halloween for all children.

The Teal Pumpkin Project, which launched as an international campaign in 2014 by Food Allergy Research & Education (FARE), provides an alternative for kids with food allergies, as well as other children for whom candy is not an option, and keeps Halloween a fun, positive experience. Participating in the campaign is as simple as buying inexpensive non-food treats such as glow sticks or small toys and placing a teal pumpkin on your doorstep to show non-food treats are available. Those who do not have a teal pumpkin can still participate by handing out non-food treats and hanging a poster which can be downloaded for free from the Teal Pumpkin Project website. FARE’s goal in 2016 is to have at least one home on every block in the U.S. with a teal pumpkin.

The FPIES Foundation joins with FARE in spreading awareness of the Teal Pumpkin project through sharing FARE’s free resources for families to print & share on our website blog and social media. 

You can participate by :

• Providing non-food treats for trick-or-treaters
• Placing a teal pumpkin in front of your home to show you have non-food treats available
• Displaying one of FARE’s free printable signs to explain the meaning of your teal pumpkin
• Spreading the word in your online community. Be sure you’re following FARE on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and contribute to the conversation using #TealPumpkinProject
• Download free activities for kids  from FARE

“We are so pleased that The FPIES Foundation is helping to spread awareness about this year’s Teal Pumpkin Project^® campaign, as we believe a unified effort will create even greater participation, leading to a more widespread understanding of the severity of food allergies and the impact that this disease has on millions of children,” said Lois A. Witkop, FARE’s chief advancement officer. “Together, we can help ensure a safer, happier Halloween for all.”

For more information, including free printable signs, stickers, posters, flyers and other materials, visit www.tealpumpkinproject.org.

ABOUT FARE

Food Allergy Research & Education (FARE) works on behalf of the 15 million Americans with food allergies, including all those at risk for life-threatening anaphylaxis. This potentially deadly disease affects 1 in every 13 children in the U.S. – or roughly two in every classroom. FARE’s mission is to improve the quality of life and the health of individuals with food allergies, and to provide them hope through the promise of new treatments. Our work is organized around three core tenets: LIFE – support the ability of individuals with food allergies to live safe, productive lives with the respect of others through our education and advocacy initiatives; HEALTH – enhance the healthcare access of individuals with food allergies to state-of-the-art diagnosis and treatment; and HOPE – encourage and fund research in both industry and academia that promises new therapies to improve the allergic condition. For more information, please visit www.foodallergy.org and find us on Twitter @FoodAllergy, Facebook, YouTube, and Pinterest.

This post was contributed by FARE.  "The TEAL PUMPKIN PROJECT^® and the Teal Pumpkin Project^® logo are registered trademarks of Food Allergy Research & Education (FARE)." 

Allergy Cookie and the Teal Pumpkin Project: UPDATE

July 2015 Update: A message from Tiffany Rogers of Allergy Cookie: “I regret to inform you that you that due to a number of factors, including recent changes in the terms and dependability of our suppliers, we have decided not to sell Teal Pumpkins for our Walk Team or on our website this year. The good news is that FARE’s Teal Pumpkin Project campaign is still alive and well and the food allergy community expects to continue to see a growth in support of it this year!  We are excited that Allergy Cookie will be helping to promote the Teal Pumpkin Project campaign and bring more awareness to food allergies, as well as encourage more people to use non-food treats to include ALL children.  Even though we won’t be selling pumpkins, my family still plans to reach out in our local community and encourage our friends, family, and neighbors to get involved.”

Tiffany Rogers founded a company called Allergy Cookie and they are offering specially designed Teal Pumpkins filled with non-food treats to handout on Halloween. They even have a special pumpkin available for FPIES - Food Protein Induced Enterocolitis Syndrome. 

Tiffany is the mother of a 3 year old child with severe multiple food allergies. She and her husband also suffer food in tolerances. Her son's birthday just so happens to be Halloween and when he turned 3 she didn't want to think about explaining to him why on his birthday he wouldn't be able to have any of the treats from trick-or-treating. That's when she heard about FARE's 'Teal Pumpkin Project.' 

Families participate in the 'Teal Pumpkin Project' by handing out non-food treats on Halloween and identifying their house as allergy-friendly by painting a pumpkin teal. 

'It was such a blessing,' Rogers says, 'to have my son receive treats while trick-or-treating on Halloween night he could keep.' 

Rogers points out food allergies are not one size fits all and that's where Allergy Cookie's Teal Pumpkin products come in. In June, they have been offering the pumpkins as part of a special fundraiser competition with proceeds benefiting FARE and a variety of different food allergy organizations, including the FPIES Foundation. 

The hope is to raise research money and awareness. Rogers asks those without allergies to participate in the 'Teal Pumpkin Project' and think about what it could mean for a child, like her son, on Halloween. 

For more information on Allergy Cookie or their Teal Pumpkin Fundraiser, and how you can order your Teal Pumpkin for Halloween, please visit their page http://www.allergycookie.com/tealpumpkinfundraiser/

This post was written by the Executive Board of The FPIES Foundation 

Trick-or-Treating with Food Allergies

Last year we shared some of our favorite tips for keeping your children safe, and included, during the Halloween festivities in our Allergy Friendly Halloween post. Be sure to check it out!

This year, many families are participating in the Teal Pumpkin Project, brought to us from FARE. The organization states: "This campaign encourages people to raise awareness of food allergies by providing non-food treats for trick-or-treaters and painting a pumpkin teal - the color of food allergy awareness - to place in front of their house along with a free printable sign from FARE to indicate they have non-food treats available. Learn more:http://www.foodallergy.org/teal-pumpkin-project”

We encourage you to visit FARE’s website to participate in this great project!

Before you head out this year, we wanted to share something one of our families made to use in their neighborhood-- they shared with us to share with you! Print these out (there is one for a boy and one for a girl) and then bring your safe treat (food or non-food) with this note to your neighbors house before you head out trick-or-treating with your little one. This lets everyone know ahead of time what your trick- or-treater is dressed as and what safe treat (provided by you!) that the neighbor can give to them!

For Boy

For Girl

This post was written by the Executive Board of The FPIES Foundation 

October 2016, edited to add cards appropriate for non-food treats: 

Non-food for Girl 

Non-Food for Boy

Allergy Friendly Halloween!

October brings Fall, Harvest Activities and Halloween!

We have compiled a list of  idea's some parents of children living with FPIES like to celebrate a safe and allergy friendly Halloween.

• Pre-assembled treat bags! Make your own treat bags (safe candy or non-food treats) and pass out these pre-assembled treat bags to your neighbors ahead of time.   When your little trick-or-treater shows up, they'll get their special, safe, treat!

• Non-food treats!   Go to Mommies of Miracles Trick or Treat page and help start a new trend in your neighborhood and encourage neighbors and friends to pass out non-food items (along with or instead of candy) to trick-or-treater's!  Mommies of Miracles has these great suggestions to make Halloween fun available to ALL kids: http://mommiesofmiracles.com/halloween/ complete with a decal to print, a map to find participating neighborhoods and non-food treat idea's.

• Stay home and participate! Dress up and hand out non-candy prizes!  If your little one is too little to trick-or-treat, staying home to greet trick-or-treaters can be a fun way to participate in the traditions!

• Donate! Trick-or-treat and donate the candy to dentist to send to the troops, such as through Operation Buy Back.

• Candy Trade! Explain beforehand to your trick-or-treater that they will have the chance to trade, or 'sell' their candy collected to you for a "prize" (something special they enjoy). 

• For even more idea's, visit this page from our friends at PIC (Protein Intolerant Children): Halloween for Kids with Protein Intolerance. 

This post was written by the Executive Board of The FPIES Foundation