Are Reese’s seasonal-shaped candies, including pumpkins, skeletons, bats, eggs, hearts, etc. gluten-free? The question of whether Reese’s pumpkins are gluten-free has been a controversial topic in the gluten-free community for years. Many arguments have taken place on social media about this topic. Since this question comes up so often I decided to do some research and I will present what I have found so that people can make their own decisions about whether to eat Reese’s pumpkins and other seasonal shapes.
First things first, most Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup varieties are gluten-free by both ingredients and they are labeled as such by Hershey. Surprisingly, this includes both the peanut butter cups that have pretzels and potato chips! Hershey has a very large list of their gluten-free products on their website, which you can find here, and they are very good about including labeling on their packaging as highlighted in the pictures below. The pumpkins are not included on Hershey’s gluten-free website list. In the Frequently Asked Questions section of Hershey’s website they state the following:
“Which REESE’S are gluten free?
All varieties of REESE’S peanut butter cups are gluten-free except for seasonably shaped items. View a full list of gluten free REESE’S products!”
The ingredients vary slightly between the traditional Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup and the Reese’s Pumpkins. However, they both appear to have no gluten-containing ingredients, so why are the cups labeled gluten-free while seasonal shapes are not?
Ingredients for Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups
Milk Chocolate [Sugar; Cocoa Butter; Chocolate; Skim Milk; Milk Fat; Lactose; Lecithin (Soy); PGPR]; Peanuts; Sugar; Dextrose; Salt; TBHQ and Citric Acid, to Maintain Freshness.
Ingredients for Reese’s Pumpkins
Peanuts; Milk Chocolate [Sugar; Cocoa Butter; Chocolate; Skim Milk; Milk Fat; Lactose; Lecithin (Soy); PGPR]; Sugar; Dextrose; Contains 2% or Less of: Vegetable Oil [Palm Oil; Shea Oil; Sunflower Oil; Palm Kernel Oil; and/or Safflower Oil]; Salt; Chocolate; Whey (Milk); Skim Milk; Lecithin (Soy); TBHQ and Citric Acid, to Maintain Freshness; Vanillin, Artificial Flavor.
I reached out to Hershey via e-mail to ask and received the following answer.
Thank you for contacting The Hershey Company. We appreciate your interest in REESE’S Holiday Shapes Candy items. You are correct, Michelle; these items do not contain gluten ingredients. Please note that we have a number of items that meet the criteria of gluten free, but are not marketed with gluten free claim. These items are among those products.
I followed up to inquire about the cleaning protocols for products manufactured on shared lines. This was the response from Hershey:
Hello again Michelle,
This is in response to your follow-up message about gluten and our REESE’S Shapes Candy items.
The 1.2 oz REESE’S Peanut Butter Eggs have the possibility of being manufactured on the same equipment as a gluten-containing item; however, the majority are not. In the event that a gluten-containing item is run on the same equipment, there are robust allergen controls in place to prevent cross contact.
So what I have learned is that Hershey’s doesn’t put a gluten-free label on their seasonal shapes, even though they don’t use any gluten ingredients. When I asked them, they said these treats meet the gluten-free criteria. They just don’t advertise it that way. They also assured me that Reese’s seasonal shapes are unlikely to be made on the same lines as gluten-containing items. But even if they are, they have serious measures in place to prevent any cross-contact. Hopefully this information helps you make an informed decision about whether the Reese’s Seasonal Shapes are a treat that you will feel comfortable eating.
