{"id":51,"date":"2014-09-28T02:32:42","date_gmt":"2014-09-28T02:32:42","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.k7farm.com\/blog\/?p=51"},"modified":"2014-09-28T02:32:42","modified_gmt":"2014-09-28T02:32:42","slug":"does-canning-save-you-money","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.k7farm.com\/blog\/?p=51","title":{"rendered":"Does Canning Save You Money?"},"content":{"rendered":"<p style=\"color: rgb(0, 0, 0); text-align: center;\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.k7farm.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/09\/1383952_10152277634409768_1184553318_n-300x169.jpg\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-53\" src=\"http:\/\/www.k7farm.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/09\/1383952_10152277634409768_1184553318_n-300x169.jpg\" alt=\"1383952_10152277634409768_1184553318_n-300x169\" width=\"300\" height=\"169\" srcset=\"http:\/\/www.k7farm.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/09\/1383952_10152277634409768_1184553318_n-300x169.jpg 300w, http:\/\/www.k7farm.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/09\/1383952_10152277634409768_1184553318_n-300x169-150x84.jpg 150w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p style=\"color: #000000;\">This summer I have had the joy of teaching other people how to can.\u00a0 It seems the question that always comes up is \u2013 does it really save you money?\u00a0 After you consider the cost of the jars, the canner, then the produce \u2013 certainly it doesn\u2019t actually\u00a0<em>save<\/em>\u00a0any money, right?<\/p>\n<p style=\"color: #000000;\">Yes and no.\u00a0 Here are a few tips that I have learned that really do save me money \u2013 keeping in mind if you don\u2019t put some thought into it, canning can easily\u00a0<em>cost<\/em>you money.\u00a0 For some, cost is not the deciding factor in canning, rather it is the quality of produce purchased and the ability to can without harmful chemicals and preservatives.\u00a0 But if cost is a deciding factor (it is one of the main reasons we can, versus just buying quality canned foods), check out the following:<\/p>\n<ul style=\"color: #000000;\">\n<li>Don\u2019t buy your jars new.\u00a0 If at all possible, scour yard sales, auctions, thrift stores, craigslist and spread the word that you\u2019re looking for jars.\u00a0 Some glass jars that held spaghetti sauce, etc. can sometimes be reused if your canning lid and ring fits on them.\u00a0 More often than not, you will find jars used.\u00a0 Providing the rim (the top of the jar where the ring screws on) has no cracks or nicks and your finger runs smoothly around the edge, you can find used jars at quite the bargain\u00a0 I don\u2019t pay more than $5\/dozen \u2013 and try to avoid paying that!<\/li>\n<li>Rings can be reused.\u00a0 They should not be stored on your jars so you don\u2019t need too many to start off with.\u00a0 You won\u2019t need to buy the boxes of lids with rings each time you need new lids.<\/li>\n<li>Lids cannot be reused, but you can find them clearance at the end of canning season, usually around $1\/box.\u00a0 Otherwise, search online to find better deals than in-store during the season.<\/li>\n<li>Don\u2019t buy your produce from a grocery store, without checking your local farmer stands first.\u00a0 Typically, the produce found in big-box grocery stores is overpriced compared to farmers stands and farmers markets.\u00a0 For example, I pay $7\/BUSHEL for sweet peppers, vs. paying $1 each in the grocery store (that\u2019s $1 per pepper).\u00a0 I might pay $15\/bushel for apples at my favorite family run orchard vs. $1\/pound at the grocery store.\u00a0 $8\/50lbs of potatoes vs. $3\/5lbs. I buy things to can typically once a year and I buy a lot of it. Then, then the food is out of season and very overpriced at the store I have my summer bounty to get us through the winter.\u00a0 It may not be fresh food, but when you\u2019re feeding a family of 8 sometimes you have to make adjustments to be able to feed everyone.\u00a0 We eat plenty of local, fresh food spring-fall, so I don\u2019t feel so bad not having access to fresh food all the time in the winter.\u00a0\u00a0 In addition to saving money by buying in bulk when the food is in season and plentiful, canned food is sometimes just more convenient for a quick meal.\u00a0 Using canned potatoes in place of fresh for some dinners means my cook time is cut in half.<\/li>\n<li>Ask for seconds, windfalls and unclassified produce.\u00a0 Seconds mean less than perfect, windfalls are things that have fallen on the ground (apples, etc.).\u00a0 These are often very discounted.<\/li>\n<li>Wait for the good deals.\u00a0 Prices go up and down at farmers stands, too.\u00a0 Usually at the end of the day, and at the end of spring\/summer\/fall the farmers try to sell their produce before it goes bad.\u00a0 We wait until late fall to buy our squash to can, when buying it by the bushel is significantly cheaper than buying it when it\u2019s first available.\u00a0 Same with strawberries \u2013 I wait until the strawberries go from $1.50-$2\/lb down to 50 cents-$1\/lb before I stock up.\u00a0 Buy your pie pumpkins\u00a0<em>after<\/em>\u00a0Halloween, and wait to buy sweet potatoes until around thanksgiving.\u00a0 We usually find a fantastic deal on sweet potatoes and buy them by the case right before Thanksgiving.<\/li>\n<li>Learn a variety of ways to can your foods.\u00a0 Potatoes are nice canned in halves, slices and dices.\u00a0 Green beans can be cut or frenched.\u00a0 Apples can be wedged, sliced, spiced, plain.\u00a0 Tomatoes can be diced, sauced, crushed, ground, stewed, whole, halved, seasoned, plain, paste. Carrots can be sliced or wedged.\u00a0 The list goes on.\u00a0 Preserve in a variety of ways so you have everything you need through the winter.\u00a0 If you aren\u2019t sure, keep the vegetables as whole as possible.\u00a0 You can later dice or sauce your whole tomatoes, but you can\u2019t turn tomato sauced into diced tomatoes!<\/li>\n<li>If the cost of a canner is too much to bear right away, consider water bath canning some high acid foods such as salsa, fruits and jellies.\u00a0 Any tall stockpot with a rack in the bottom and a lid will work for that.\u00a0 See if a friend is willing to can with you, so you can use her canner.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p style=\"color: #000000;\">Roughly $.42\/jar if you buy them on the high end of $5\/dozen used.\u00a0 Personally, I buy all of my jars from a guy who buys estates.\u00a0 He makes no money off of them and hasn\u2019t found anyone who wants them so he will give me dozens at a time for $10 or so and sometimes doesn\u2019t even charge me at all!\u00a0 So for me, the cost of a jar doesn\u2019t play into this. Also keep in mind jars can be reused. The next time you use them, the cost of that jar is free if you\u2019ve already calculated that cost into it\u2019s first use.<\/p>\n<p style=\"color: #000000;\">Lets use green beans as an example.\u00a0 We can buy a 14oz can of green beans for about $.80\/jar at the low end, around a dollar or so on the higher end.\u00a0 I can buy a bushel of green beans for $15, which cans 13-20 quarts or 26-40 pints.\u00a0 A pint is 16 ounces (more per jar than storebought cans).\u00a0 If you buy a bushel of green beans for $15 and you get 16 quarts (picking a number between 13-20), that works out to $.94 cents per QUART \u2013 or $.47 cents per pint. Of course, depending on actual yield this number will fluctuate slightly.\u00a0 At the high and low end, you\u2019re looking at $1.15 per quart ($.58 per pint) to $.75 per quart (about $.38 per pint).<\/p>\n<p style=\"color: #000000;\">Lids, when purchased on clearance for $.99\/box are about $.08 cents per lid. Give or take a little more if you buy them in season when the cost is slightly higher.<\/p>\n<p style=\"color: #000000;\">So, if you buy your jars at $5\/dozen ($.42 cents per jar), get an average of 16 quarts or 32 pints (or any combo in between) at $.47 cents per pint and spend approx. $.08 per lid (assuming you have rings), you are looking at about $.97 per pint.\u00a0 After you factor in the cost of the jar after the first batch, you\u2019re looking at $.55 per pint thereafter \u2013 and that includes a bit more than your average can at the store and you can avoid all that salt by canning your own.\u00a0 If you grew your own green beans, you only pay for the cost of the lid after the initial use of the jar!<\/p>\n<p style=\"color: #000000;\">I did not include the cost of gas (or electricity) or the cost of my time.\u00a0 It\u2019s a lifestyle for us (in addition to my hobby) so I just include it as time spent on meal prep.\u00a0 After all, I would be spending the time one way or another because I try to avoid the tasteless, salty veggies at the store at any cost.\u00a0 When it comes to the use of gas, honestly I haven\u2019t noticed a large jump during our canning season to bother including it.\u00a0 We typically try to eat cold meals or homemade freezer meals when I\u2019m canning because my kitchen is always a mess and not available to make a meal in anyway so I guess the gas use kind of takes the place of making our three main meals.\u00a0\u00a0 I am also very conscientious of how much gas I am using and make it count when I am using it so things aren\u2019t boiling any longer than they need to.\u00a0 Actually after writing this I tried to figure the cost of use per hour and it worked out to about 5 cents per hour on the range per big burner.\u00a0 If I run two for an hour, which I normally do, that\u2019s 7.5 cents per hour.\u00a0 Divide that up amongst the pints and it\u2019s less than a penny per hour on gas.<\/p>\n<p style=\"color: #000000;\">If you can find canned vegetables for less than what it costs you to can them yourself, you\u2019re short on time, and\/or you\u2019re fine with the ingredients and quality of commercially canned items, then perhaps canning won\u2019t be for you.\u00a0 However, if you like the opportunity to reduce or eliminate salt, sugar, high fructose corn syrup, and the many other preservatives found in commercially canned soups, stocks and produce while supporting local farmers and enjoy knowing where your food came from\u2026 Give canning a shot!\u00a0\u00a0 If you prefer flavorful vegetables even if canned\u2026 Give canning a shot!\u00a0 You will still taste summer when you crack open a jar of green beans or tomatoes grown from local dirt under the sunshine.\u00a0\u00a0 It\u2019s a beautiful thing!<\/p>\n<p style=\"color: #000000;\">\n<p style=\"color: #000000;\"><strong>My costs<\/strong><\/p>\n<p style=\"color: #000000;\">Here is a little list detailing my approximate costs on canning.\u00a0 To make things easier I am just going to round that 7.5 cents on gas up to an even 8 cents per canner load.\u00a0 I am using the cost of $5\/dozen for used jars because that is the average cost of used jars for the general public.\u00a0 Many of my jars this year were free or no more than $3\/dozen so my ACTUAL cost is much lower than this.\u00a0\u00a0 Lids, when on clearance (when I normally buy them) are $.99\/box.\u00a0 I am trying to detail these approximate costs so they apply to everyone locally so you can get an idea based on these prices, if canning will save you money. \u00a0Keep in mind, I rarely, if EVER use coupons because I rarely, if ever buy canned stuff at the store.\u00a0 As a result, I compare my savings to what I would normally pay at the store, without coupons.\u00a0 I normally can in QUARTS but because I would normally buy a 14.5oz can of veggies at the store, I am figuring my cost on the closest size \u2013 the pint.<\/p>\n<p style=\"color: #000000;\">Apples:<\/p>\n<p style=\"color: #000000;\">This year I bought apples at $9\/bushel.\u00a0 A bushel yields 28-36 pints.\u00a0 $.08 for the lid + $0.08 for gas + $.42 per jar + $.32 (for 28 pints) OR $.25 (for 36) = $.90-$.83 for the INITIAL use.\u00a0 Once that jar has been emptied and is ready to use again, it will cost you $.48-$.41 per pint.\u00a0 And, you can choose how your apples are packed, including sugar free options or plain apple juice, so you aren\u2019t left with syrup packed apples.<\/p>\n<p style=\"color: #000000;\">Potatoes:<\/p>\n<p style=\"color: #000000;\">Using $.58 as my base (for jar+lid+gas).\u00a0 I paid $8 for 50lbs of potatoes.\u00a0 This will can 36-44 pints (depending on how you cut them).\u00a0 $.22-$.18.\u00a0 So, to can 36 pints the first time it would cost $.80-$.76 per pint.\u00a0 After its initial use, it would then cost you $.38 to $.34.\u00a0 You can control the salt content, as well.\u00a0 Growing potatoes is not hard \u2013 you\u2019d only have $.16 into each jar if you just had to factor in the cost of the lid and the gas!<\/p>\n<p style=\"color: #000000;\">Tomatoes:<\/p>\n<p style=\"color: #000000;\">This year killed me with tomatoes.\u00a0 Normally I grow my own so I don\u2019t have to factor in the cost of tomatoes, but this year my garden did not produce like usual and I had to buy tomatoes at what I felt was a very high price of $15 per bushel (keep in mind, I\u2019m cheap and am used to growing my own!). \u00a0\u00a0Typically each month we buy the bulk cans of tomato sauce, about 3-6.\u00a0 Plus paste, a bulk box of 12-6oz cans.\u00a0 Sometimes diced tomatoes.\u00a0 Sometimes tomato juice.\u00a0 Either way, we average about $20\/month on tomatoes. \u00a0A bushel of tomatoes equals approximately 14-18 pints of sauce.\u00a0\u00a0 That breaks down to $1.07 to $.79 per pint.\u00a0 If you like a thinner sauce, you would get more.\u00a0 Depending on how thick you like your thick sauce, you would can your sauce as a cost of $1.37 to $1.65 per pint.\u00a0 In this case, we may have broke even in tomato sauce cost \u2013 but my tomatoes were local and I know it\u2019s just tomatoes and a splash of lemon juice in mine.\u00a0 No spices, high fructose corn syrup or \u2018natural flavor\u2019.\u00a0 In this case, quality rules (if I was able to find my tomatoes on sale for a better price).\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0After the initial use of the jar, your future batches of tomato sauce would only cost $.95 to $1.23.<\/p>\n<p style=\"color: #000000;\">Carrots:<\/p>\n<p style=\"color: #000000;\">I buy \u2018deer carrots\u2019 by the 25lb bag.\u00a0 This is full of odd sized carrots, some broken.\u00a0 I look at carrots around $1+ per pound, or spend $8 for 25lbs.\u00a0 Even if some are wasted because they are too small to use, it still works out.\u00a0\u00a0 You will get approximately 20 pints from 25lbs of carrots.\u00a0\u00a0 It would cost about $.98 per pint, if I had to pay for that first use of the jar.\u00a0 If the jar has already been paid for during its prior use, we\u2019re looking at $.56 per pint.<\/p>\n<p style=\"color: #000000;\">Sweet Potatoes:<\/p>\n<p style=\"color: #000000;\">I buy sweet potatoes twice a year.\u00a0 Once, at the farmers stand for $15\/50lb box.\u00a0 \u00a0The next chance is around Thanksgiving when the local grocery stores sell them for about $10\/case.\u00a0 Then, I buy more. But there is no guarantee that prices will be that low year after year, so I buy some earlier in the year \u2013 just in case.\u00a0 A 50lb box yields approx. 34-50 pints. \u00a0For it\u2019s initial batch, including the cost of the jar, you\u2019re looking at $.88 per pint (for the $15\/box cost) of 50, or $1.02 for 34 pints.\u00a0 After the initial cost of the jar has been paid for, future batches will cost $.46 to $.60 per pint.<\/p>\n<p style=\"color: #000000;\">Corn:<\/p>\n<p style=\"color: #000000;\">We purchase corn, on average, at 2 bags for $5.\u00a0 Last year I bought a ton of corn for 3 bags\/$5 but this year due to lots of rain our local stand didn\u2019t a sale like that. We can stuff approximately 20 ears of corn per bag.\u00a0 About 6 good size ears of corn will yield two pints, so we will say that two bags = 40 ears of corn, will yield about 12 pints.\u00a0 This brings the initial cost to about $1\/pint.\u00a0 Once the initial cost of the jar has been calculated, the cost of the jar is about $.58 per pint.<\/p>\n<p style=\"color: #000000;\">Overall, canning does save me money. And in addition to saving money, I know what is in my food, my food is local (if not homegrown), and I can control the salt and sugar that goes in.\u00a0 For me, it\u2019s a win-win.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p style=\"color: rgb(0, 0, 0); text-align: center;\">\n<p style=\"color: #000000;\">This summer I have had the joy of teaching other people how to can. It seems the question that always comes up is \u2013 does it really save you money? After you consider the cost of the jars, the canner, then the produce \u2013 certainly it [&#8230;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[22],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.k7farm.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/51"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.k7farm.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.k7farm.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.k7farm.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.k7farm.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=51"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/www.k7farm.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/51\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":61,"href":"http:\/\/www.k7farm.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/51\/revisions\/61"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.k7farm.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=51"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.k7farm.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=51"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.k7farm.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=51"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}