CONCERNS that poor pumpkin crops combined with HGV transport issues could threaten Devon’s Halloween celebrations have been ‘squashed’ by the county’s food waste recycler Andigestion, in Holsworthy.

The recycler has reassured householders that any sort of scary-faced veg can still be disposed of as part of their usual kerbside food waste collection.

Poor weather earlier in the season meant that pumpkins were slow to ripen and this, combined with the ongoing shortage of HGV drivers and pickers, could still jeopardise supplies. However, with Halloween now on the Horizon, Mike Lowe, operations director at Andigestion, which annually recycles up to 76,000 tonnes of food waste — including pumpkins — at its Holsworthy plant, has come up with a possible solution for anyone facing a potential pumpkin crisis.

“A shortage of pumpkins this year could lead of the revival of the ancient tradition of carving scary faces into turnips and swedes, or indeed any autumn vegetables,” he suggested.

“Hundreds of years ago, people in Ireland and Scotland placed them in windows or near doors to frighten wandering spirits away but when Irish emigrants started moving to the US in the 1800s, the native pumpkin was adopted for Halloween purposes.”

Mike added: “However, whether you end up with a petrifying pumpkin or a terrifying turnip, we’ll still collect them alongside the usual food waste!

“When processed through our anaerobic digestion process, pumpkins and turnips — like all food waste — help contribute to the production of clean, green and eco-friendly energy for local homes and a nitrogen-rich, organic fertiliser for use by local farmers.

“Not many people realise that the food waste from our plates — and at Halloween, off our doorsteps — generates such environmentally-friendly and sustainable energy!”