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Father builds massive, 50-foot pirate ship for Halloween
Tony DeMatteo, a father in New York, built an impressive 50-foot long, 20-foot tall pirate ship in front of his home in Churchville, outside of Rochester. (Credit: Pat Kirk)
Instacart, the popular grocery delivery and pick-up platform, has officially released its Halloween candy data report — and the results may surprise you.
"With the spookiest time of the year finally here, Americans are getting in the spirit by filling their Halloween candy baskets early," Laurentia Romaniuk, Instacart’s trends expert, tells FOX News. "According to Instacart purchase data from last year, customers purchased 2.5 million pounds of candy in the weeks leading up to October 31."
"Whether they’re buying trick-or-treat candy early or enjoying the candy for themselves, candy is a central part of Halloween’s spirit and festivities. For many, it’s often more important than having a costume," she continues, adding that when it comes to the top candy in America, candy lovers are fond of bite-sized chocolate treats with Peanut M&M’s and M&M’s topping the charts as the number one and two top candy products sold on Instacart in terms of weight.
Rounding out the top five are Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups, Hershey’s Milk Chocolate, and Twizzlers, in third, fourth, and fifth place, respectively.
FILE - Two children sort through Halloween candy beside pumpkin-themed treat buckets in an arranged photograph taken in Tiskilwa, Illinois, on Sept. 20, 2020. (Photographer: Daniel Acker/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
To dig into all things Halloween candy this year, Instacart partnered with The Harris Poll to gather survey responses from some 2,000 Americans nationwide, with questions ranging from favorite and least favorite candies to "trick-or-treat confessions" (read: mom stole the candy).
Below, intel from Instacart’s The Great Halloween Candy Debate report. Warning: Don’t read when you’re hankering for sweets.
Last-minute candy shopping: According to Instacart data, almost half (43%) of all candy purchases in October take place during the last week of the month with October 31st as the peak day for candy purchases as people prepare for trick-or-treaters.
The South loves candy corn: Instacart data showed that Mississippi, Kentucky, Virginia, North Carolina, and Arkansas are the most likely to purchase candy corn compared to the national average.
The biggest sweet tooth: The top five states with the most candy purchases are all located west of the Mississippi River, while the bottom 5 are all located east of the Mississippi.
Sneaking from the kids: More than half of parents (53%) are absolutely or probably going to eat their kids’ candy this year. 56% of these parents say they won’t feel guilty about it.
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Boy dressed up as Lion King VHS for Halloween
Max, 7, used hot glue, foam board, duct tape, posters and a Styrofoam cooler to dress up as a VHS copy of the Disney classic "The Lion King." (Credit: Casey Cole Tindell via Storyful)
Based on Instacart purchase data, the company also revealed the most popular candies in America. Below, a breakdown of the most uniquely popular Halloween candy by state on the Instacart platform:
- Alabama - Starburst
- Alaska - Red Vines
- Arizona - Red Vines
- Arkansas - Candy Corn
- California - Red Vines
- Colorado - Candy Corn
- Connecticut - Twizzlers
- Delaware - Swedish Fish
- Florida - YORK Peppermint Patty
- Georgia - Starburst
- Hawaii - Red Vines
- Idaho - Red Vines
- Illinois - Twizzlers
- Indiana - Twizzlers
- Iowa - Twizzlers
- Kansas - Candy Corn
- Kentucky - Candy Corn
- Louisiana - Life Savers
- Maine - Swedish Fish
- Maryland - Twizzlers
- Massachusetts - Swedish Fish
- Michigan - Twizzlers
- Minnesota - Twizzlers
- Mississippi - Candy Corn
- Missouri - Twizzlers
- Montana - Red Vines
- Nebraska - M&M's
- Nevada - Red Vines
- New Hampshire - Swedish Fish
- New Jersey - Ferrero Rocher Hazelnut Chocolates
- New Mexico - Werther's Original
- New York - Ferrero Rocher Hazelnut Chocolates
- North Carolina - Candy Corn
- North Dakota - Twizzlers
- Ohio - Reese's Peanut Butter Cups
- Oklahoma - Snickers
- Oregon - Red Vines
- Pennsylvania - Swedish Fish
- Rhode Island - Swedish Fish
- South Carolina - Life Savers
- South Dakota - Skittles
- Tennessee - Candy Corn
- Texas - Sour Patch Kids
- Utah - Swedish Fish
- Vermont - YORK Peppermint Patty
- Virginia - Candy Corn
- Washington - Red Vines
- Washington, D.C. - Lindt Truffles
- West Virginia - Reese's Peanut Butter Cups
- Wisconsin - Twizzlers
- Wyoming - Red Vines
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