1943 Poster. Artist: Parker, Alfred, 1906-1985. United States. Office of War Information.
I took a canning class from the Sedgwick County Extension Service a coupla years ago. Very informative. Canning and freezing food cannot be thought of as chic and stylish but the trend does fit into the movements of going green, urban farming and local food eating and growing. People want to take back their food from factory food farms. They want to eat well and eat healthy. Sales of canning equipment is up 50% from last year. The U.S.D.A.’s strict guidelines for canning procedures, which have become even stricter over the last two decades. Blake Slemmer has written these guidlines in plain language for the rest of us on http://www.pickyourown.org/
Another trend in canning is the community kitchen or community canning event such as the ones on http://www.yeswecanfood.com/ . Everyone comes together at the time that a certain fruit or vegetable is ripe and cans together and then split or sell the proceeds.
"Canning was first used as a way to preserve food in France during the Napoleonic Wars, a process in which fruits, vegetables, or meat are boiled, then stored in an airtight container, extending their shelf-life by months or even years." -- Misty Harris, City Farmer News
On the other hand:
"However, home gardens don’t make as much economic sense at current prices because processed food is so much cheaper today. When the stock market crashed in 1929, Americans were spending almost 20 percent of their disposable income on food. Today, they spend less than half that because of increased farm productivity and the establishment of a global distribution system." Darryal Ray in Neighbors Alabama farmers Federation.
So if you are growing a garden to save money, well, you may not save much. But many people these days are growing and canning to try to eliminate pesticides, unsafe growing practices and using and reusing natural resources.
