darkmeadow replied to your post “I’m thinking of doing Halloween at the Library and handing out candy...”
Ok so I feel weird replying twice in one day, but hey! Yes we've done it! We do an after-hours Boo family program in which we hand out apple cider and donuts from a local market. But we also have candy on hand and on the actual day of Halloween at the desks. Nothing with nuts and we're sure to keep the original bag around in case a parent asks to see it (though we buy the individual wrapped stuff, but some parents like to double check).
We have restrictions on what we can serve food-wise because we’re in a building with a cafe that has the contract for food in the building. Everything has to be done through them, and they charge exorbitant prices. Apple cider and doughnuts for 20 people would probably cost us over $100. The real kicker is that they don’t make food on site, they would literally go to the Farmer’s Market, buy locally made items, and then sell them to us at major mark-ups. Being a non-profit and dealing with that sucks.
But yay! Thanks for the advice re: the packaging and nuts. I’m not a children’s librarian, so I don’t need to deal with parents often, especially over food restrictions.