You know what's scary? Buying Halloween treats. That's scary.

First off, half the stuff stocked corner grocers has been sitting in their back rooms since the Halloween before last. Second, trick-or-treat hosts may have a gnawing feeling that if they buy the wrong assortment of mini-candies, all the kids in the neighborhood—especially their own—will think they are lame.

But it's OK. New launches and old classics have been dressed up for the holiday this year.

STARBURST CANDY CORN
Company: Wm. Wrigley Jr. Company

The Starburst brand apparently saw an opportunity after realizing that candy corn doesn't actually taste very good. So the company has come up with its own, fruity version. We tried it, and it ain't half bad. Still, we think we'll stick with the classic version sold by Brach's and others. Because candy corn isn't about taste, it's about embracing the sugar rush and ignoring concerns about tooth decay.

THE DRACULA LOLLY
Company: Unilever

The ice cream treat with the blood-colored centers are back from the dead. U.K. Unilever has revived the brand just in time for Halloween. Of course you may have to travel to England to buy them. But you know what? It would be worth it.

UNREAL CANDY
Company: Unreal Brands

We love this stuff! Have you tried it yet? They took some of the classic candies like M&Ms and peanut-butter cups and then remade them with healthier ingredients. These things are wildly delicious. You have no idea just how gross candy has become until you taste the Unreal version.  Unreal isn't making any Halloween-specific treats this year. But who cares? Hand any Unreal candy to trick or treaters that come to your door and then slyly tell their parents how you decided to spend a little extra this year to ensure the children had candy that was both healthy and delicious. You won't believe how good it feels when you get to act that snobby around other parents!

THE STANDARDS
We get it. Families are in a rush. Many don't have time to go England for Dracula Lollies and local mega-markets don't carry Unreal. No problem! The big boys of the candy world have lots of cool options this year.

• Mars is offering pumpkin-shaped Snickers, M&Ms in harvest colors, and the usual variety bags.
• Nestle has rolled out new versions of a number of its staples too. We're particularly fond of the SweeTarts Skull and Bones.
• And Hershey is back with snack-sized versions of many of its brands. And the company has brought back the Cadbury 'Screme' Egg—​complete with green yolk.

​​LIQUIDS

Who says you have to eat your Halloween treats? There are loads of cool things to drink this time of year too. First and foremost, of course, is blood. But drinking that stuff will stain your teeth. Here are a few alternatives:

• TruMoo milk is offering Halloween-themed versions of its chocolate and vanilla milk. There are spooky new labels, and the vanilla milk is being dyed orange.
• Target is once again stocking the Halloween-flavored sodas from Jones. The cans feature creepy looking characters and come in flavors like candy corn and caramel apple.

THE MOST PERFECT CANDY IN THE HISTORY OF HALLOWEEN

But you know what? Forget everything we just said. Ignore all those products and instead put all your shopping energy into finding the "get" of Halloween 2013. 

Behold, the green tea KitKat bar. It's made with real maccha green tea, which means it may be healthy. But who cares? It's a Kit Kat bar. And Kit Kats were already probably the most loved candy in the trick or treat bag. And Kit Kats are really in this year because of the whole Google Android deal. And they're green! They are a weird, scary green!

They're also very hard to find unless you can get to a supermarket that imports products from Asia.

Would you like to see more food and beverage industry news and information like this in your inbox on a daily basis? Subscribe to our Food Dive email newsletter! You may also want to check out our Food Dive's look at America's top 15 nutrition bars.