It’s that time of year again. The leaves are changing, the weather is getting colder, and the pumpkin flavor is back. As the months of October and November roll in, consumers everywhere are flocking to the nearest Starbucks for their Pumpkin Spice Latte.

Starbucks created the Pumpkin Spice Latte in 2003. Ever since then, countless other food retailers have been jumping onto the bandwagon, hoping to gain the amount of profit as the creators did. Instead of simply re-creating the drink, food sellers instead try to implement the pumpkin spice/pumpkin flavor into their foods. As you have probably seen already, this can take the form of dog treats, yogurt, cereal, muffins, and air freshener.

While all of these pumpkin flavored foods may seem to taste like pumpkins, some of them don’t even have real pumpkins in the ingredients. According to Starbucks’ “My Starbucks Idea” blog, this is the first year that the Pumpkin Spice Latte will be made with real pumpkins. “So, with that great taste you know and love, the PSL returns this fall, and this time it will be made with real pumpkin and without caramel coloring.”

Despite many of these pumpkin flavors not actually containing pumpkin, their sales continue to increase every year. The Nielson Company looks at the trends and buying habits of consumers from over 100 countries. According to them, “Pumpkin products accounted for $361 million in sales in the last year alone, having grown 79% since 2011.”

However, it seems that while pumpkin flavors are benefiting from their profits, the same cannot be said for the actual pumpkins. Also from the Nielson Company, “Sales of fresh pumpkins have been declining, with unit sale losses in 2011, 2013 and 2014 accounting for 8.6 million fewer pumpkins sold.”

This could be because of the rising trend of pre-pumpkin flavored foods, giving buyers the freedom of not having to flavor their own foods with a homemade concoction of spices from their kitchen cabinet. Perhaps it could also be due to the fact that pumpkins can be a hassle. Even using them for jack-o-lanterns can make a parent put on a brave face, preparing for the oncoming mess.

Even with the popularity of the drink, not everyone is going crazy over how everything is pumpkin flavored. Freshman Brianna Arambula said, “It’s okay. It’s not my favorite, but it’s not bad in the fall time.”

With the data and opinions of consumers in mind, it doesn’t seem like pumpkin flavors are going anywhere any time soon.