Say gourd bye to Halloween by donating your pumpkins to pigs

Pumpkins for Pigs accepts donations across Virginia. Here’s how you can turn your Jack o’Lanterns into a fun snack.

Carving Jack o’Lanterns has been a Halloween tradition for centuries. Though it requires a good deal of setup and clean up, it’s fun to plan out specific designs and see if they end up looking the way you thought they would. (If you’re anything like me, the finished Jack O’Lantern very rarely looks how I pictured it in my head when I started carving…). Once everyone is done with their pumpkins, you fill them with tea lights and sit back to enjoy their spooky magic. The downside to all of this—aside from the aforementioned clean up—is trying to figure out what to do with them after Halloween is over and before they begin to rot.

That’s where Pumpkins for Pigs comes in. Their mission, according to their website, “is to reduce food waste in our communities by diverting viable foodstuffs including pumpkins to farms, animal sanctuaries, and rescues for feed or compost.” The idea came to Jennifer Seifert, Pumpkins for Pigs’s founder, after a conversation she had with a local farmer back in 2017. He said that his animals love to eat pumpkins, “it’s a treat,” and that he’d gladly take any that Seifert might have leftover. Since then, her Loudon, VA operation has expanded to over 600 donation sites throughout the US and Canada.

Want to learn how you can donate your Halloween pumpkins to some adorable animals in your area? We’ve got you covered.

Where to donate and what’s accepted

The donation season for Pumpkins for Pigs typically runs from November 1 until January 31. If you’re looking for somewhere to donate your holiday wreaths and trees, they’ll take those too since they’re apparently a big hit with goats. Donation sites can be found throughout Virginia from Swoope to Floyd to Leesburg. Click here for a complete list of locations. These sites are typically found on animal rescues and sanctuaries, homesteads, and farms, to name a few.

You can donate any of the following items to Pumpkins for Pigs:

• Pumpkins
• Produce (fruits, vegetables)
• Gourds
• Evergreen wreaths and trees
• Dry goods
• Pastries
• Bread
• Straw
• Corn stalks
• Hay
• Brewer’s grain
• Outdoor plastic playhouses
• Kiddie pools

Please note that donations must be free from sprays, dyes, mold, and decorations, including inks, paints, gemstones, and glitter, to ensure the health and safety of the animals. Here’s the Pumpkins for Pigs FAQ page in case you need additional information or if you have any questions regarding what you can donate.

Being able to provide for animals and getting rid of your Jack O’Lanterns before they turn to mush on your front step? That’s definitely a win-win in my book.

This article first appeared on Good Info News Wire and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.

Related: The 8 biggest & best pumpkin patches in Virginia