A recent TikTok video, posted by creator Joe Benavidez under the handle @joebenavidez01, showed a collection of Halloween candy gathered from a Trunk or Treat event. The video opened with an overhead shot of the assorted candy spread across a light-colored countertop. A male voice, identified as Benavidez, stated, “Just got back from Trunk or Treat and, uh, a couple of observations. This is how you know that we’re in a deep recession.”
Benavidez’s hand entered the frame, picking up a small, clear plastic-wrapped roll of Smarties candy. He rotated it to show its size, observing that the candy seemed smaller than in the past. He stated, “First of all, Smarties now come in like a half pack. They used to be, you know, like the full pack. Now it’s just like a little half sleeve.”
The speaker then gathered a handful of small, orange-colored bags labeled “Cheese Balls” with a ghost graphic, along with some green-packaged snacks. He held them up, noting, “Cheese Balls, Corn Products, like 6 bags of those.” He then dropped them back onto the pile of candy.
Social Media Users React to Candy Scarcity
Benavidez then searched through the candy pile, asking, “Where is it at? This is the part that…” He located and picked up a tiny, clear plastic packet labeled “GUMMY BEARS” by Frankford. The packet appeared to contain only one or two gummy bears. He held it up to the camera, exclaiming, “A single gummy bear. What the f–k?”
The video’s public caption offered further context to the observations. It stated, “we live in a decent neighborhood and the school that hosted this is one of the best schools in the state… you know it’s bad.” The caption also included hashtags such as #trunkortreat, #halloween, #candy, and #recession.
The video’s comment section showed numerous reactions from viewers, many of whom seemed to echo similar sentiments regarding candy portions and types. Several users specifically focused on the small gummy bear packet highlighted in the video.
One commenter wrote, “One single gummy bear? In its own individual plastic packaging? Insane.” Another user also commented on the packaging, stating, “single gummy bear in a package is so wasteful.”
Other comments discussed the types of candy being distributed. One user observed, “You can tell also because the candy is all gummies, suckers, hard sugars and no chocolate. Chocolate is way expensive now.”
Some commenters shared what they were giving out instead of traditional candy. One person said, “I’m just giving out ducks 🦆,” while another noted, “We’re giving out Debbie cakes this year. Actual groceries are cheaper than candy 😅.” A final comment simply stated, “My warning was when these came out of nowhere 😭.” Candy inflation has pushed some givers toward cheaper alternatives, like a man who compared one Crumbl cookie to a six pack of Coors Light to see which was healthier.
