Are you one of the many people that are both impressed and intimidated by those who line their shelves with home-canned jams, preserves, vegetables and pickles each fall? Do you see their task as miraculous, mysterious and possibly dangerous?
If the fear of botulism is preventing you from mastering the simple skill of canning and joining the ranks of people who win prizes for the crunchiest pickles or the best-canned relish at your local fall fair, then you're in luck.
Although botulism is certainly undesirable, it's also extremely rare despite scary urban-canning myths. Follow some simple safety rules for home canning and there's no concern.
What is botulism anyway?
Food-borne botulism is a rare but serious illness resulting from eating food that has been contaminated with the bacterium
Clostridium botulinum spores.
According to a 2005 report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), botulism is a paralytic disease beginning with paralysis of face muscles, then spreading to the limbs and, in severe cases, progressing to respiratory compromise and death. Other typical symptoms include double vision, blurred vision, difficulty swallowing, dry mouth and muscle weakness.
"In food-borne botulism, symptoms generally begin 18 to 36 hours after eating a contaminated food, but they can occur as early as six hours or as late as 10 days," according to the CDC. So, that means all of the typical urban myths which involve a person dropping dead within seconds or minutes of eating a home-pickled beet, for example, are a stretch.
In the United States, about 22 cases of food-borne botulism are reported each year, and of these cases only three to five percent actually die of the illness--that's one person out of a population of 309,442,000.
To put it into perspective, you have more chance of getting struck by lightening (one in 5,000 according to the US National Weather Service) than becoming ill or dying of a home-canned pickle--especially if you follow the simple, safety rules of canning.
Safe canning
Since botulism spores are resistant to heat and thrive in a moist, oxygen-free or low-oxygen environment, improper home canning creates the perfect environment in which to grow the botulism toxin. There is no way to tell if a jar of food has been contaminated because it may look and smell normal. The best insurance is proper canning protocol, including proper and clean equipment, clean food and lots of hot water.
Because fruits are high-acid foods, they are pretty resistant to bacteria and, therefore, to botulism. That's why the traditional water-bath canning method is fine for canning things like apples, apricots, berries, peaches, pears, pickles, sauerkraut, tomatoes and fruit-based jams and jellies.
More of a safety concern is the canning of vegetables, for example, asparagus, carrots, corn, green beans, mushrooms, peas, potatoes, pumpkin, squash and unpickled beets, which are low-acid foods. Meat and seafood are also low-acid foods and need a higher temperature to be safely preserved. The best way to ensure your canned veggies are safe is to use a pressure canner, which heats the water surrounding your jars up to 116C (240F)--the temperature required to destroy botulism spores.
If canning is new to you, the best way to learn how is to have someone show you or to do it along with an experienced canner. Besides, canning with a friend or relative is more fun and efficient.
Water-bath canning is inexpensive even if you need to purchase the basic equipment. A pressure canner is more of an investment, but well worth the money in the long run considering the results. For most people, water-bath canning is sufficient since canning of fruit and pickled vegetables is the most popular.
If you want to be one of those amazing people who cans things, go for it. Don't let fears stand in your way. Grab the opportunity to increase your food security and enjoy locally grown food year round. Canning saves money and is a ready-to-eat convenient source of tasty, nutritious food.
Correct Canning Info
National Center for Home Food Preservation
http://www.uga.edu/nchfp/how/can_home.html
Food Safety Site.com
http://www.foodsafetysite.com/consumers/resources/ca...
Preserve Food.com
http://www.preservefood.com/canning/safety.shtml