Gluten Free Halloween Candy
It’s that time of the year again, the temperature is starting to drop, there’s a nice breeze in the air, and Pumpkin Spice Lattes are the early morning pick-me-up to everyone’s day. October is probably one of the most interesting times of the year for Floridians because we actually get to experience a change in the weather and kids are voluntarily staying out and playing for long periods of time. So, in honor of this festive time of the year, we decided to compile a list of gluten free candies you might want to handout to the little goblins and princesses knocking at your door (or perhaps utilize as a way to clean out your kids candy bags before they start digging in!).
Happy Halloween everyone!
Gluten Free Halloween List:
Hershey’s maintains a list of gluten free candies and updates it several times each year. The following list of Hershey’s candies are considered gluten free to less than 20 parts per million:
Almond Joy (all except for Almond Joy Pieces candy)
Mounds (all)
Hershey’s Milk Chocolate Kisses
Hershey’s Special Dark Kisses (but not the Special Dark candy bar)
Hershey’s Filled Chocolate Kisses in the following flavors: Milk Chocolate, Chocolate Filled with Caramel, Chocolate Filled with Cherry Cordial Creme, Vanilla Creme, Dark Chocolate Filled with Mint Truffle, Pumpkin Spice, Carrot Cake, Meltaway Milk Chocolates, Special Dark Mildly Sweet Chocolate
Hershey’s Hugs
Hershey’s Nuggets (milk chocolate, milk chocolate with almonds, special dark chocolate with almonds, and extra creamy milk chocolate with toffee and almonds)
Hershey’s Milk Chocolate Bar, only in the 1.55 oz. size
Hershey’s Milk Chocolate with Almonds Bar, only in the 1.45 oz. size
Hershey’s Air Delight
Hershey’s Milk Duds
Heath Bars (all)
Payday (all)
Reese’s Fast Break bar
Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups (all except for seasonal shaped items, such as Valentine’s hearts)
Reese’s Pieces (all except for Reese’s Pieces Eggs)
Rolo Caramels in Milk Chocolate (all except for Minis)
Skor
Skor Toffee Bar
York Peppermint Pattie (all except for York Pieces candies, York Minis, and York Shapes)
The following Hershey’s products are NOT gluten free:
Hershey’s Special Dark Bar
Hershey’s Cookies ‘N’ Creme Bar
Hershey’s Milk Chocolate Drops
Hershey’s Miniatures
Mr. Goodbar
Symphony Bar
Hershey’s Extra Dark Chocolate
Mars Chocolate makes M&M’s, Dove, Snickers and other products. The company does not maintain a gluten free list of products; instead, it urges gluten free consumers to check labels and promises to call out any wheat, barley and rye ingredients by name, as well as any cross-contamination risks, on the label.
M&M’s (EXCEPT for pretzel-flavored M&M’s).
3 Musketeers Bars (all flavors)
Milky Way Midnight Bar (not the original Milky Way Bar)
Milky Way Caramel Bar
Dove Chocolate products (all flavors EXCEPT for milk chocolate cinnamon graham/cookies and cream)
Snickers Bars (all flavors)
Munch Nut Bar (the customer service representative urges consumers to check the labels on this one)
The following Mars Chocolate products have NOT been gluten free:
M&M Pretzel flavor and some M&M seasonal flavors
Some packages of seasonal flavored M&Ms—in the past this has included White Chocolate, Mint and M&M Coconut flavors
Milky Way Bar (original)
Mars Bar
Mars Combos (a snack mix)
Nestle USA labels only a small handful of candies and chocolate as “gluten free,” meaning the company has tested them and confirmed that they contain less than 20 parts per million of gluten. These candies include:
Butterfinger bars, but only in fun size, singles, and share pack (Butterfinger Bites, Butterfinger Minis, Butterfinger Cups, and special holiday-shaped Butterfinger items are NOT considered gluten free)
Goobers
Nips (including both regular and sugar-free)
Raisinets (including Cranberry and Dark Chocolate flavors)
Toll House morsels and chunks (most, including the popular semi-sweet and milk chocolate morsels, are labeled gluten free—look for those with a “gluten free” designation)
The following Nestle candies have no gluten ingredients:
Baby Ruth
Bit-O-Honey
Milk Chocolate
Oh Henry!
Sno-Caps
Wonka Pixy Stix
Laffy Taffy (including Laffy Taffy Rope)
Wonka Lik-M-Aid Fun Dip
The following Nestle candy products are NOT gluten free:
Butterfinger Crisp Bar
Butterfinger Giant Bar
Butterfinger Snackerz
Butterfinger Medallions
Butterfinger Jingles
Butterfinger Hearts
Butterfinger Pumpkins
Kit Kat Bar
Wonka Nerds
Sweetarts
Wonka Bar (all flavors)
Chewy Spree
Wonka Gummies
Wonka Kazoozles
Everlasting Gobstopper
100 Grand Bar
Tootsie Roll Industries, which also makes Charms products, says that, as of September 2016, all of the companies confections are considered gluten free except Andes cookies.
According to Tootsie Rolls Industries, the following candies are gluten free:
Tootsie Rolls
Fruit Rolls
Junior Mints
Frooties
Dots
Tropical Dots
Crows
Cella’s Milk Chocolate Covered Cherries
Cella’s Dark Chocolate Covered Cherries
Junior Mints
Dubble Bubble
Charleston Chew
Junior Caramels
Tootsie Pops
Tootsie Peppermint Pops
Caramel Apple Pops
Fruit Smoothie Pops
Tropical Stormz Pops
Child’s Play
Charms Blow Pops
Charms Super Blow Pops
Charms Pops
Zip-A-Dee-Mini Pops
Fluffy Stuff Cotton Candy
Sugar Daddy Pops
Sugar Mama Caramels
Charms Squares
Charms Sour Balls
Charms Candy Carnival
Pops Galore
Andes
Sugar Babies
Necco probably is best known for its small sugar Valentine heart candies — the pastel-colored ones that say “Be Mine” and “True Love” — but candy stashes often turn up a few Necco products every Halloween, as well.
According to Necco, the following products do not contain gluten from wheat, rye, oats or barley:
Necco Wafers
Necco Chocolate Wafers
Candy House Candy Buttons
Canada Mint, Wintergreen and Spearmint Lozenges
Mary Jane
Mary Jane Peanutbutter Kisses (available for Halloween only)
Banana Splits Chews
Mint Julep Chews
Haviland Thin Mints, Wintergreen Patty, Nonpareils and Chocolate Stars
Skybar
Sweethearts (for Valentine’s Day only)
Conversation Hearts (available for Valentine’s Day only)
Mary Jane peanut butter kisses (for Halloween only)
Ferrara makes such brands as Bob’s (well-known for candy canes) and Brach’s. According to the company, the following candies contain no wheat, rye, barley or oats:
Candy canes (Bob’s, Brach’s, Lemonhead & Friends, Red Hots) — these also are considered allergen-free
Atomic Fireballs
All gummies (Black Forest, Ferrara, Sathers, Trolli)
All jellies (Gum Drops, Orange Slices)
Bob’s Sweet Stripes
Boston Baked Beans (contains peanuts)
Brach’s Wild ‘N Fruity Gummi Worms
Brach’s Candy Corn (processed in a facility that also processes wheat)
Brach’s Cinnamon Disks/Imperials
Brach’s Conversation Hearts
Brach’s Jelly Bean Nougats (processed in a facility that processes wheat)
Brach’s Lemon Drops (Kosher)
Brach’s Halloween Mellowcremes (processed in a facility that processes wheat)
Cherry Sours
Fruit Snacks (Ferrara, Black Forest, Trolli)
Gumballs
Jawbreakers/Jawbusters
Jelly Beans
Juju’s
Jujy’s
Lemonheads
Lemonheads & Friends Conversation Hearts
Tropical Chewy Lemonhead
Chewy Lemonhead & Friends
Berry Chewy Lemonhead
Cherryhead
Grapehead
Now & Later
Red Hot’s
Impact makes Warheads sour candies, which always seem to wind up in our Halloween stash. Many of the company’s products are considered gluten free, but be careful, as multiple candies have similar names but very different allergen profiles:
Carousel/Color-Blaster Pops (considered gluten free)
Lollipop Paint Shop (considered gluten free; made on equipment that processes soy)
Warheads Extreme Sour Hard Candy (considered gluten free; contains soy; equipment shared with peanut and milk products)
Warheads Extreme Sour Hard Candy Minis (considered gluten free; equipment shared with milk and soy products)
Warheads Sour Chewy Cubes (considered gluten free; equipment shared with peanut products)
Warheads Sour Jelly Beans (made in facility shared with wheat, peanuts, milk, egg and soy)
Warheads Super Sour Double Drops (considered gluten free; facility shared with egg products)
Warheads Super Sour Spray Candy (considered gluten free)
Warheads Sour Dippers (considered gluten free; equipment shared with soy products)
Warheads Sour Candy Canes (contain soy; made in facility shared with wheat, peanuts, tree nuts, milk, egg, and soy)
Melster Chocolate-Covered Marshmallow (considered gluten free; contains milk and soy, made on equipment that also processes peanuts)
Melster Compound-Coated Marshmallow (considered gluten free; contains milk and soy, made on equipment that also processes peanuts)
Melster Chocolate-Covered Creme Drops (considered gluten free; contains milk and soy, made on equipment that also processes peanuts)
Melster Compound Coated Creme Drops (considered gluten free; contains milk and soy, made on equipment that also processes peanuts)
Melster Salt Water Taffy (considered gluten free; contains milk and soy, made on equipment that also processes peanuts)
Melster Peanut Butter Kisses (considered gluten free; contains peanuts, milk and soy)
Melster Circus Peanuts (considered gluten free; contains peanuts, made on equipment that processes milk and soy)
Melster Sanded Marshmallow (considered gluten free; made on equipment that processes peanuts, milk and soy)
Melster Coconut Toasties (considered gluten free; made on equipment that processes peanut, milk and soy)
Impact Convections products that are NOT gluten free include:
Warheads Sour Twists (contains wheat)
Warheads Sour Coolers (contains oat fiber)
As I said, many of these have very similar names, so be very careful to double-check labels — it’s easy to make a mistake!
Peeps marshmallow treats, made by Just Born, used to appear only at Easter, but in recent years, we’ve seen Halloween Peeps shaped like pumpkins and ghosts, Christmas Peeps in the shape of trees, and heart-shaped Peeps for Valentine’s Day.
According to Just Born, the following candies are gluten free:
Mike and Ike Berry Blast
Mike and Ike Italian Ice
Mike and Ike Jolly Joes
Mike and Ike Lemonade Blends
Mike and Ike Original Fruits
Mike and Ike Redrageous
Mike and Ike Tangy Twister
Mike and Ike Tropical Typhoon
Mike and Ike Zours
Mike and Ike Jelly Beans
Mike and Ike Hot Tamales
Goldenberg’s Vintage Peanut Chews
Hope this list helps!
Have a happy and safe Halloween everyone!