Walmart, Costco preferred Canadian retailers for Halloween candy: Study

Ghastly prices at the grocery store couldn’t keep Canadians away from the Halloween candy aisle this year.

Even as the cost of Halloween goodies increased 13.1% since last year, Dalhousie University’s Agri-Food Analytics Lab, in partnership with Caddle, found 53% of Canadians will hand out candy on Oct. 31.

As for where they’ll buy that candy, the lab said Walmart is the number one option for Canadians at 22.7%, followed by Costco at 21.2%. Discount grocery stores are third at 20.7%, followed by traditional grocery stores at 19.5%. 

While drug stores/pharmacies are preferred by 6.2% of Canadians, 5.4% prefer dollar stores to get candy for Halloween.

When it comes to selecting which candy to purchase, 62% of respondents said they choose treats they’d eat themselves, while 52.9% said price is an important factor.

Selecting an allergy-free candy is important for 29.7% of Canadians. While 20.1% said better packaging is an important consideration, 12.6% believe it is important to buy treats that are healthy for children. Interestingly, only 19.0% of Canadians believe Halloween-themed packaging is important when selecting candy for trick-or-treaters.