# Canning and Finances



## Peacock (Apr 12, 2006)

I love canning. I wonder though, sometimes, whether it's worth the labor/time/energy used to put things in cans vs. freezing them or buying them commercially canned or, in some cases, just not canning at all.

Of course, there's the consideration of the jars and lids. I don't count the jars into the equation at all, because they're reusable and if nothing else will be used (are used!) as drinking glasses. Lids aren't that expensive either; I've found awesome deals on eBay. Bought enough a couple years ago to last a long time, and I reuse the lids for temporary purposes, like when I just want to use a jar in the fridge to store leftovers.

Now, the argument about freezing vs. canning is easily countered with the knowledge that electricity occasionally fails. Ours does, with alarming frequency, considering we're really not that far out in the country. Three, four hours is quite common -- days, even, if things are particularly bad. We have a generator, but that costs money too. OTOH, if you have things in the freezer at all, it's worth saving them. Might as well have a full freezer to run the generator for, vs. half full freezer because a lot of what might be in there was canned. 

But, then again, if worse comes to worst and you run out of generator fuel, if most of your stuff is canned, at least you haven't lost everything.

The argument about canning vs. commercially canned is mostly flavor and quality. It's also about specialty recipes. You might have an awesome corn relish recipe you sure can't buy at the grocery. But for ordinary things like green beans and corn, why not just buy them at the store? Even if you grow your own, sometimes it's cheaper just to buy them.

I wonder about this mostly when I can things that take a VERY LONG TIME to process, like low acid veggies and especially meat. Okay, I have never canned meat yet, but I am going to this year. 

I have an electric stove and a canner that only processes six pints at a time. I have a larger canner I bought used but I need a new seal and need to test the gauge first. Dedicating an hour and a half or more to canning six pint jars is sometimes questionable to me. Granted, it couldn't use_ that_ much electric to heat up one stove burner for 90 minutes, could it? And if I had a bigger canner, wouldn't it just take more energy to heat it? Or would the economy of scale be worthwhile?

So at this point, I see three main reasons to can. First, to preserve things I grew myself, rather than trust them to the freezer. Second, because some foods are just better canned than frozen or dried. Third, as a disaster prep issue because canned foods are easier to use and stay safe if electric fails. 

But what I'm asking here is --- in which cases do you think you actually save money by canning? Has anyone ever calculated the expense of running that stove eye for the time required? Got any tips for making it more financially


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## mekasmom (Jan 19, 2010)

I can mainly meat because I feel that is the most frugal thing to can. To me, peas are not worth the effort because I can just buy the tin cans at thirty cents a piece at a good sale. Same with corn. I do can tomatoes. I also can leftovers. If I make chili, and we eat it two meals, then the leftover gets canned.


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## Sherry in Iowa (Jan 10, 2010)

I totally understand why you wonder if it's worth it. About this time every year it crosses my mind too..for about an instant :gaptooth: But I know that the food is healthier for us. I know that it's worth the work to know what's in our food. 

We do like to have "extra" on hand. Even though my hubby is a lineman, we try to be prepared for the lights to go out. We do have a full freezer, but putting a little meat on the shelves is a great idea. AND..it's so handy and cuts down on preparing meals. That's a big plus for this family.

Congrats..keep the coffee and chocolate near and keep on canning!


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## CottageLife (Jul 20, 2009)

I don't know that I'm saving money at this moment for the meat, but I do know the meat I'm buying and canning is cheaper than it will be in a year when we eat up the jars.

The other items that I grew myself I am saving money, but I also then know what went into the jar.

Fruit/Veggies that I purchase at a local farm to can vs buying already canned at store - well, again, at least I know what went into the can. I'm sure it would have been cheaper and MUCH easier to go buy applesauce last night than make some to can........ Oh the mess we made............ lol! But mine has no additives, and I know exactly what is in it


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## ai731 (Sep 11, 2007)

CottageLife said:


> Fruit/Veggies that I purchase at a local farm to can vs buying already canned at store - well, again, at least I know what went into the can. I'm sure it would have been cheaper and MUCH easier to go buy applesauce last night than make some to can........ Oh the mess we made............ lol! But mine has no additives, and I know exactly what is in it


This is a lot of why we do it. Also, we try to eat organic as much as possible, and canning your own organic foods is a big cost savings. I also try to compare apples-to-apples, if you see what I mean. For instance, I can buy a can of Hunts tomato sauce on sale for $0.79 - which is way cheaper than I can can tomatoes for. But that can is lined with some sort of plastic / chemical that I don't want to eat. The cheapest I can buy a JAR of strained tomatoes is about $2, so I'm breaking even on my own canning there.

The other reason I can is that I'm buying produce that I can't grow myself from local farmers, so I'm supporting my local economy and the small, mixed farms.

Also I figure I'm learning and practicing skills that may turn out to be vital to our survival, a few years down the road...


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## jcatblum (Dec 15, 2009)

We sell at market & I can our culls & leftovers. I could sell all the greenbeans I can grow for $2.50 a lb corn on the cob 2/$1 & such. It is so hard for me when I look at a batch of product & go wow that was $50 worth of tomatoes that I just put up as crushed tomatoes that I could have bought for $5. I like knowing what's in my food but DH likes money more. So for us putting up the ugly stuff or the stuff from slow market days keeps us from being wasteful & doesn't feel like it cost me as much.


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## Gladrags (Jul 13, 2010)

I don't can to save money; I do it to control the ingredients in at least some of my food.


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## Kristinemomof3 (Sep 17, 2012)

Gladrags said:


> I don't can to save money; I do it to control the ingredients in at least some of my food.



Me too and if I do save money, well it's more in my pocket.


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## Jeepgirl86 (May 18, 2012)

I guess my 2 cents on this subject is this: I don't have to spend money on jars (inherited from mom and grma), the price of seeds/plants are pretty minimal considering the yield (maters went bonkers this year). We spend about $5.00 a day on electricity in the summer so that isn't really a factor either. I have enough canned veggies to get my family thru to the next harvest and beyond in case it is a bad year next year and they cost me a whole lot less than what I can get on sale at the grocery store and I control what has been sprayed on my food and what it has been processed with. Basically, my veggies are free, so yes, I'd say it is well worth it.


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## oregon woodsmok (Dec 19, 2010)

I don't think you save any money, especially if you are buying any if the things you can.

Jars cost (even if you reuse them) lids cost, the power to can costs, the canner is expensive. Juicers, pitters, peelers cost money. And surely your time is not completely worthless.

So, if you home can, you need to have a different reason than saving money.


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## countryfied2011 (Jul 5, 2011)

> Jars cost (even if you reuse them) lids cost, the power to can costs, the canner is expensive. Juicers, pitters, peelers cost money. And surely your time is not completely worthless.


IMO, most of those items listed is a one time initial investment, I'm not going to buy a new canner,peelers etc every year nor jars, although I do add to my existing inventory when I find them on sale. I don't can to save money I can to know what is in my food, also as to not have all "my eggs in one basket" so to speak. Meaning if I froze everything and my freezer went kapoop, then I have other alternatives to eat from. Same with dehydrating. The main factor is knowing what is in my food, and the satisfaction that I didn't have to depend on the food chain to eat. I also like the fact of convenience especially the meat. 

I think it is well worth the time, the money that I do spend.


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## oneokie (Aug 14, 2009)

jcatblum said:


> We sell at market & I can our culls & leftovers. I could sell all the greenbeans I can grow for $2.50 a lb corn on the cob 2/$1 & such. It is so hard for me when I look at a batch of product & go wow that was $50 worth of tomatoes that I just put up as crushed tomatoes that I could have bought for $5. I like knowing what's in my food but DH likes money more. So for us putting up the ugly stuff or the stuff from slow market days keeps us from being wasteful & doesn't feel like it cost me as much.


Best post on this thread.


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## COSunflower (Dec 4, 2006)

Canning helps my budget IMMENSLEY!!! I can want I grow, what the neighbors grow and don't want and all the leftover garden and orchard produce from my friends and co workers. I have been canning for years so the only thing I really buy is lids and any sugar, salt,vinegar, spices etc. needed. No different then if you were cooking the items for dinner at the moment...I have a giant windfall of grapes coming from the grandson of a neighbor who has too many. All sorts and colors grown on his FILs farm...I will be canning, freezing, drying and jam making with them this weekend. I live by myself so alot of my canning goes to my son's family or my elderly folks. It benefits everyone!  I also think it is important to practice the skills that we may need in earnest sometime in the near future. Practice makes perfect.


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## Becka03 (Mar 29, 2009)

I do a workshare- so we worked 2-3 hours each saturday since May- 
we got enough veggies to do all our canning- I got all my jars on freecycle and craigslist and yardsales- I ask for any extra fruit from trees that isn't getting picked...I know I am saving money- I love canning and this yr we did alot
We also use an outdoor turkey fryer to can outside


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## nandmsmom (Mar 3, 2006)

I can what I grow, or what people give me. Most of my jars were gotten for free, with some that I've gotten on sale. I was given a ton of lids, and got some off ebay for cheap as well. The costs are my canner (bought 5 years ago), the garden costs and electricity. I think I come out way ahead. However, if I had to buy everything, I would still do it. As previous posters have said. I want to trust what we're eating, how it is processed and process to our tastes. I can't buy my homemade pasta sauce or bread and butter pickles anywhere else. They are made to our tastes, from our own veggies. You can't buy that.


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## danarutan (Mar 13, 2011)

I feel like I save a lot of $$ canning-- jars I've been given or bought 2 nd hand for 25 cents or less, I buy lids at end of season when on sale and use a lot of tattler reuseable lids, my canner I bought 2'nd hand 20 years ago, most of food I can we raise or grow here, but I do buy apples and peaches. This year apples were high but even at $28 a bushel I ended up with 14 qts apple pie filling, 18 pt applesauce, and 9 jelly jars of apple butter that's less then 70 cents a jar and I know how much sugar etc. is in it. Also ended up with 2 gal ziplock bags full of peels and cores to feed the rabbits, and I'm trying apple cider vinegar with peeling scraps. I did the same thing with the tomatoes -- saved all the peelings scraps etc in ziplock and froze it to feed the chickens this winter. You also can't replace the feeling you get when you pull a jar down and make a wonderful meal for your family. I don't count my time because MOST of the time I enjoy canning and we make it a family event.


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## jwal10 (Jun 5, 2010)

Canning is expensive, just electricity, lids and water used. We inherited the jars, canners and equipment. We put our energy in extending the season with hoops, a greenhouse, long time storage, smoking and solar dehydrating. We can less every year. Somethings just have to be preserved, some we like better preserved, either canned or frozen. Sometimes it is canned because we got a lot unexpectedly, we don't like waste....James


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## suitcase_sally (Mar 20, 2006)

jwal10 said:


> Canning is expensive, just electricity, lids and water used. We inherited the jars, canners and equipment.


Here's an example of cost: I bought 79Â¢ worth of yellow wax bean seed and planted a 20' row. I got 36 pints and 7 quarts of beans before I got tired of canning them and started giving them to the dog (she LOVES raw beans!). That comes out to *.0158 *per pint, that's less than 2Â¢ per pint plus *10Â¢* for a lid. Jars were free. Water is free. Electricity to can all those beans was around *25Â¢*. All together my beans cost about 12.5Â¢ per pint. At the store, the regular price for a can of beans is 79Â¢ - on sale maybe 33Â¢. I still come out ahead.

Tomatoes - I paid $2.38 for 8 plants. I made 24 pints of Italian tomatoes, 24 pints of Creole sauce, 24 pints of Peruvian sauce (my fave and you can't buy it), 24 pints of pasta sauce, 24 pints of plain tomatoes and all the eating tomatoes I wanted. The extra ingredients for the various sauces was, maybe, $3. So the costs got down to maybe 16Â¢ per pint, including lids.

I paid 79Â¢ for a packet of beet seeds and got 25 pints of canned beets plus a few for eating fresh plus 6 pints of beet greens. Total cost? 12.5Â¢ per pint, including lids.

Swiss chard, 79Â¢ for a packet of seeds and got 36 pints of canned chard. Cost? 12Â¢ per pint, including lids, plus there's enough in the garden to do another 20 pints, but I'm tired of doing chard.

The shell beans I do are a different story. I grow and plant my own seeds, so the cost drops to 10Â¢ per pint (or quart - one lid either way).

Potatoes are free. I plant the leftovers from the previous year.

Carrots are 5Â¢ per pound. DH buys a couple of tons for deer feed and I get what I want out of the truck load and can them up, so the cost is, maybe 11Â¢ per pint, including lids.

Electricity is much less costly than you might expect. It costs perhaps 25Â¢ to do a canner load of anything. Double stack your jars and you cut the cost in half.

My water is free. There is nothing that says you can't use rain water or creek water in your canner and it's free there also.

Now, I admit, if you are just starting out and have to buy all your equipment, then, yes it's expensive. But, year after year with economies of scale, the costs just keeps dropping.


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## mabeane (Jun 5, 2010)

I love to can both meat and veggies. I do it because we want to know what we are actually eating. I also get enough on the shelf to go through til the next season. Today I am making and canning applesauce.


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## siletz (Oct 5, 2010)

I think that for the work involved in canning, it cannot be only based on money saved. There are so many other benefits to canning your own food that have already been mentioned here. I get good, home grown, organic, non-BPA tainted food for my effort. 

But, being by nature a very frugal person, I always try to make my canning be the cheapest option as well. Obviously, growing your own produce from seed is the best option there. But, sometimes shopping the sales works well, too. This spring, pineapple came on sale for $1 each. I bought 20 of them and canned them up into pints. I calculated it cost me .67 per pint, where as a can of store bought pineapple is usually around $1 here. When pork roasts come on sale, I grab a bunch and can up some pulled pork for instant meals. I think being aware of what is a good sale, then taking advantage of it is a good way to make canning cheaper.


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## suitcase_sally (Mar 20, 2006)

Gesh! I wish I could find pinapple for $1! About the lowest I've ever seen them around here is $2.99! Usually they're $3.99!


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## jwal10 (Jun 5, 2010)

My point was....If I can store it, extend the season or spread out the season I don't have to can it. Many things store well in the package God provided. It takes a lot of water to can, wash the fruits/vegys, water added, clean up, etc. Plus all the time to do it. I guess I am lazy by nature. Many times economy is....less. I save a lot of money by doing less, spending less, getting by with less. I can butcher a rabbit/squirrell/pig/raccoon/fish and smoke it, it is preserved for up to a month. I can grow a cabbage in the fall and cover with a hoop and it will be good (better than a summer grown cabbage) in March. And be fresh for what ever I want to make....James


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## simplegirl (Feb 19, 2006)

I don't count my time in the cost. Frankly, I am doing something I enjoy and I know exactly what is in the food I am canning and that is worth a LOT to me. I just moved this year and no garden since we moved in July so the first year I haven't canned in years. I will have a garden next year again for sure!

That being said, I am like Suitcase Sally in that I feel that I still come out ahead financially when I can my own produce or free produce and even sometimes when I buy produce actually. The reason I say I don't include my time is that it is not actual money going out from my budget. Sure I could be doing something else like watching a stupid show on TV (if I had TV) but I feel my time is well spent. 

I have not canned meat yet but plan to. I know the price of meat is going up daily so I would save more by canning it when I can get it more cheaply now than waiting until I need it to buy.


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## suitcase_sally (Mar 20, 2006)

jwal10 said:


> My point was....If I can store it, extend the season or spread out the season I don't have to can it. Many things store well in the package God provided. *It takes a lot of water to can, wash the fruits/vegys, water added, clean up, etc.* Plus all the time to do it. I guess I am lazy by nature. Many times economy is....less. I save a lot of money by doing less, spending less, getting by with less. I can butcher a rabbit/squirrell/pig/raccoon/fish and smoke it, it is preserved for up to a month. I can grow a cabbage in the fall and cover with a hoop and it will be good (better than a summer grown cabbage) in March. And be fresh for what ever I want to make....James


James, while I agree with much of what you have said, many - or even MOST of us don't live in a climate that lets us have fresh cabbages in March. I wish I had that option. I agree, late cabbages are sweeter than summer cabbages. I grow late cabbages and don't harvest until they've been hit with a good frost or two, but they won't survive 10Âº whether I have a hoop or not. 

It takes a lot of water regardless of whether you are canning or fixing fresh food. You still have to wash, cook and clean up.

I guess each of us has to determine whether canning is a good deal or not, and I suspect that MOST of the people on _this_ forum think it is - or they wouldn't be on here.


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## Mulligan Man (Oct 10, 2012)

jwal10 said:


> My point was....If I can store it, extend the season or spread out the season I don't have to can it. Many things store well in the package God provided. It takes a lot of water to can, wash the fruits/vegys, water added, clean up, etc. Plus all the time to do it. I guess I am lazy by nature. Many times economy is....less. I save a lot of money by doing less, spending less, getting by with less. I can butcher a rabbit/squirrell/pig/raccoon/fish and smoke it, it is preserved for up to a month. I can grow a cabbage in the fall and cover with a hoop and it will be good (better than a summer grown cabbage) in March. And be fresh for what ever I want to make....James


Water use isn't an issue for many/most of us.


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## Mulligan Man (Oct 10, 2012)

Peacock said:


> I love canning. I wonder though, sometimes, whether it's worth the labor/time/energy used to put things in cans vs. freezing them or buying them commercially canned or, in some cases, just not canning at all.
> 
> Of course, there's the consideration of the jars and lids. I don't count the jars into the equation at all, because they're reusable and if nothing else will be used (are used!) as drinking glasses. Lids aren't that expensive either; I've found awesome deals on eBay. Bought enough a couple years ago to last a long time, and I reuse the lids for temporary purposes, like when I just want to use a jar in the fridge to store leftovers.
> 
> ...


I think once you begin to can meat and meat based soups all of your doubts will be removed.

I also try to can as much as I can in cool weather that way the heat is used to cook the food and then to heat the house.


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## bluebird2o2 (Feb 14, 2007)

I cant buy anything in a store that tastes as good as homeade applesauce or salsa.Salsa is expensive.besides my vegetables have no pesticides.I got most of my jars free from relatives.we have an orchard soo im not buying any fruit.we have apples, peaches,cherries and plums.I think it would be terrible too waste all that fruit.Grandmas apple butter recipe and pickled beets,Nostalgia is a big part of it.


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## netskyblue (Jul 25, 2012)

My favorite thing to can is chicken stock. My favorite store-bought brand is $3.99 a quart, and homemade is better-tasting. A couple of months ago, I got chicken thigh quarters on sale for $0.59/lb. Paid $9.33 for 15.82 pounds. From that I got 5 pints of chicken and 6 quarts of stock (with some chicken left over, less than a pint, which I froze). That came out to $0.55 per pint, or $1.10 per quart, compared to $3.99 - that's a steal.

If you have to can store-bought goods, the trick is to buy lots when the items are at their lowest sale price. 

When I make caramelized onions, I can those too, in little bitty jars. It takes a good hour and a half to get them really, really caramelized, and that's time I save, if not money, when I want to use caramelized onions to flavor something. I can do it once and be set for a whole year.

The last time I canned roast beef, it came out to approx. $5 per quart. That will make three meals of roast beef & gravy and all I have to do is add a side like potatoes or sliced bread, for $1.67 plus the cost of the side. For a home cooked meal! 

Then you can look at it like this: every time you need a fast meal and can open a jar of something already made, you could be saving yourself a trip through the drive-through, or a frozen dinner, or whatever else you would have resorted to for a quick eat.


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## claytonpiano (Feb 3, 2005)

I have been preserving food for 30 years. I actually agree with every post on this thread. There are MANY different ways to save money on food with canning being one of them.

Dehydrating is free if you use the sun like DH's grandmother. My canners were bought long ago and have paid for themselves many times over. When Tattler lids came out, I bought a bunch and just bought more. So far, they have worked great and I have re-used those rubber rings now at least 10 times. 

I save my own seeds, plant my own garden, ferment vegetables, store them in an insulated garage, can and dehydrate. It all saves me money and time. It may take time to can food and you use energy of some sort, but later when I am preparing a meal, the food is already cooked. Then the time spent canning earlier becomes free time when I am really busy during other times of the year. My soups are free because I have made them from left overs and canned them. Lunches become easy and healthy and I am not buying lunch meat because I am using my canned meat.

I guess what I am saying that canning CAN save money, but other methods save money as well. You have to pick what is most economical at the time. You also prepare food so that later you can save time when you are preparing a meal. 

This is just how we do things now. It took 30 years to get to this point. My kids are working hard to learn what I know now. Wish I had done the same when DH's grandmother was alive. Just think how much sooner I would have gotten to this point!


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