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Market Snapshot: Is Halloween candy a viable fossil fuel alternative?

Release date: 2018-10-30

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Across Canada, each Canadian consumes almost 136 grams of confectionary items around Halloween each year. In energy terms this translates to about 57 000 gigajoulesFootnote 1. That is nearly the same amount of energy needed to heat 570 Canadian households for one year. That’s a lot of energy! When compared to common fossil fuels Halloween candy can pack a bigger energy punch than coal but not as big as light crude oil or natural gas.

Halloween candy contains calories. Calories are the measure of energy content found in carbohydrates, fat, and protein. Like candy, fossil fuels also contain energy which is stored in the bonds between hydrogen and carbon atoms. Just like different types of food have different amounts of caloric content, different fossil fuels have different amounts of energy content.

The chart below compares the energy content of Halloween candyFootnote 2 to commonly used fossil fuels in kilojoules per 100 grams.

Energy Content

Source and Description Source: Statistics Canada, GBX , NEB calculations Description: The column chart illustrates the energy content of selected fossil energy sources and candy bars, expressed in kilojoules per 100 grams. From the lowest to highest energy content: Coal (subbituminous): 1879 kilojoules

Candy bar (chocolate, fudge, or cookie): 2301 kilojoules

Light crude oil: 3941 kilojoules

Gasoline: 4703 kilojoules

Natural gas: 4778 kilojoules

Halloween candy might not be quite the sweet fossil fuel alternative we’ve been looking for but it tastes better!

Footnote 1 According to a report by Statistics Canada, Canadians consume on average 17.2 kilograms pounds of sugar per capita annually. Of this, roughly 7% is derived from confectionary items, mostly chocolate bars and candies. The sale of these is approximately 20% higher than average in October. Assuming candy consumption follows sales patterns, combined with Canadian population data, the NEB estimates that approximately 57 000 gigajoules worth of candies are consumed by Canadians during the month of Halloween. Return to footnote 1 referrer Footnote 2 A 100 gram candy bar has about 550 calories, or 2 301 kilojoules. Return to footnote 2 referrer