Not to get spooky, but has anyone else felt a chill while walking down the Halloween candy aisle?
Unfortunately, it might not be unseen ghosts causing a shudder, but the price of chocolate. The cost of the popular sweets has been on the rise for quite some time, and this past year was no exception.
According to research conducted by Finance Buzz, the price tag of 100-piece candy bags rose on average by about $2 this year compared to 2024. And those who have been buying the big bags every Halloween to hand out candy or just eat it on the couch might remember an even more affordable time.
Since 2020, there has been a 78% increase in the price of the 100-piece bags of goodies. On average, that accounts for an approximate $7 increase for the treats over the past five years.
Related | Americans feel the pain of Trump's economic 'wrecking ball'
Chocolate as a whole has been facing a cost crisis. And when President Donald Trump’s chaotic tariffs came for major cocoa exporters like Brazil, West Africa, and Ecuador over the summer, people clutched their favorite cacao confections.
Trump issued an exemption for cocoa products coming out of Indonesia in August, with talks of issuing a sweeping exemption for cocoa exporters given that the product cannot be made domestically outside of a small portion that comes from Hawaii.
Daily Kos tried to reach the Office of the United States Trade Representatives to confirm these details, but given the ongoing shutdown, phone lines were unattended and emails did not get a response.
President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump give candy to children during a Halloween event at the White House on Oct. 28, 2018.
And while Trump’s tariffs might make a simple scapegoat for rising prices, major chocolate producers in the U.S. are saying that it’s more nefarious than that.
A representative for Hershey explained that the “unprecedented” rising cost of cocoa has put a strain on their production costs, ultimately resulting in a need to increase the prices of some of their chocolate goods.
Nestlé, which manufactures the beloved KitKat and Butterfinger brands, did not respond to Daily Kos’ request for comment.
But it’s climate change that’s emerging as the major challenge for chocolatiers trying to keep prices low.
Major cocoa exporters like West Africa have been hit hard by increasingly tumultuous weather patterns. And with dwindling supply—well, you know how it goes.
The spookiest part of all of this geopolitical chocolate talk is that the Trump administration has been doing its part to ensure cocoa—and all other crops—might never see their glory days again.
Environmental Protection Agency Secretary Lee Zeldin has dismantled programs studying climate change while proudly announcing he was prepared to “drive a dagger through the heart of climate change religion.”
To make matters worse, Zeldin has openly said that he no longer believes in the harmful effects of greenhouse gases.
Related | Here’s how Trump’s crappy EPA chief is lying to you now
In other words, don’t expect the U.S.—a major producer of environmental damage by way of massive corporations—to help make your candy bars any cheaper.
As we look ahead to bare-bones environmental regulations and nonexistent studies on climate change, deducing the culprit behind the cocoa industry’s struggle is hardly a whodunit.
