Sunday, October 18, 2009

WSJ: Canning Makes A Combeack

Our vegetable garden isn't big enough to produces excess for canning, but the children do love making pickles from the cucumbers at the farmers' market. From Ana Campoy's article in The Wall Street Journal:

"The worst recession in decades and a trend toward healthier eating are inspiring many Americans to grow their own food. Now the harvest season is turning many of these gardeners into canners looking to stretch the bounty of the garden into the winter...

At Jarden Corp.'s Jarden Home Brands—the maker of Kerr and Ball brand jars—sales of canning equipment are up 30% this year through mid-September, over the same period in 2008. And canning classes from Brooklyn, N.Y., to Boise, Idaho, report seeing skyrocketing enrollments this year.

Canning has been around since the dawn of the 19th century, when, at Napoleon's behest, a Frenchman developed a method of sealing food in bottles to prevent spoilage on long military campaigns. The process was later adapted to factory-sealed metal cans, but at home, "canning" is still practiced in thick glass jars..."

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

That is the way economy goes. When one business type falls away something takes it place as a matter of necessity. Just like the jar market and the classes. It is great to see the young folks getting into this. Us oldies already know the pleasures of preserving our harvests.
Thank for the lesson in the history of preserving foods.
QMM

Hortist said...

nice information about canning :)

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