US Drops Record-Busting $2.3B on Halloween Candy

By the time trick-or-treating ends tonight, Americans will have spent a record-breaking $2.3 billion on this year's Halloween candy, according to the National Confectioner's Association. Much like costume sales, candy sales appear to be impervious to the poor economic climate: LiveScience reports that they keep rising 1% to 3% each year. How much of that is candy corn? About 35 million pounds.

The good news is, if you don't want your child to eat his or her entire allotment of said candy in one evening, it may very well last forever—or at least until next Halloween. Since candy is high in sugar and low in moisture, it has a long shelf life, Slate explains. Pure chocolate lasts two years or more, although it will only be at peak quality for one of those years, but other candy bar ingredients, like nuts, go bad more quickly. (Click to see how much Americans planned to spend on costumes this year.)