Zero Waste Jack-O-Lanterns

Written 29/10/2023
Updated: 14/10/25

ZERO WASTE JACK-O-LANTERNS

Are you one of the more than 5.3 million Australians preparing to celebrate Halloween this year? Or, at least, are feeling compelled to get on board because of a relentless 10-year-old?

If so, you might be tempted to have a gruesome, carved, snarling pumpkin face spookily luminated by the light of an internal candle adorning your front verandah.

If you're jumping on the jack-o-lantern carving trend, you’re not alone! According to research from Roy Morgan, Australian supermarkets are set to sell more than ONE MILLION KILOGRAMS of pumpkins this year (2024).

The tradition of carving jack-o-lanterns sees: 

• an estimated 500,000 Tonnes of pumpkins head to landfill just in America each Halloween.

• Eight million pumpkins get binned in the UK after Halloween.

All that food waste, most of it going to landfill... and unfortunately, when food decomposes in the airless landfill environment, it creates the greenhouse gas methane, which is 23 times more potent than carbon dioxide.  

The average emission factor for food waste going to landfill in Australia is ~1.9 kg CO₂-e per kg of food waste (Dept of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water). So if 1 million kg of pumpkins end up in landfill, that’s ~1,900 tonnes of CO₂-equivalent emissions.

Or, to put it in perspective, that’s roughly equivilent to 

• Driving 450 petrol cars for a year, or
• Powering 350 average Australian homes annually.

All this for a few hours of Halloween fun.

But turn that pumpkin frown upside down! Your spooky fun doesn't have to be scary for the planet. Here's our tips on making your jack-o-lantern a sustainable addition to your frightening festivities.

• Make sure to use the cut out flesh for cooking pumpkin soup, have some mashed pumpkin with your dinner, add it to a curry, pie or try a pumpkin pizza base! It's really easy. Make some pumpkin soup and freeze it for winter.

• Feed leftover seeds to the birds.

• Or why not eat them yourself? See snack recipe idea.

• Compost the pumpkin after Halloween, where it will recycle it's nutrients instead of festering and bubbling in landfill. No compost? throw it in the garden and let the birds take care of it, give it to your neighbours' chooks or your nearest community garden. Some Councils also have green waste bins that accept all organic waste, or FOGO bins.

For an Aussie twist on this very American tradition, Australians could buy a beloved summer fruit instead of a pumpkin. Pineapple-o-lantern? Eat the pineapple flesh immediately, refrigerate for later, or freeze it to use later in recipes, smoothies or cocktails.

Whether you choose pumpkins or pineapples, if you are going to do the carving, do the composting! Or leave it out for the possums and birds.

Read our BLOG: PLASTIC FREE HALLOWEEN for more sustainable Halloween ideas.

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All our blog articles written by Rachel or our Guest Bloggers are well researched and 100% written by a real human person. We hope you have been informed, educated or entertained.

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