# Home Canning PSA



## trc65 (Aug 23, 2020)

Don't know if anyone else here does much canning, but a heads up for those that do. We were running a few lids short yesterday, but no big deal, was heading into town last night for a sandwich, so would stop and pick up a couple of boxes.

Nope, not happening! Not a lid, jar or anything else on the shelves anywhere - you could buy four packs of 4 oz fancy jelly jars ($15), but nothing useful. No big deal, thought I'd just order them online and get them in a day or two. Only problem, Amazon and other retailers are price gouging to the extreme! Normally, a box of 12 lids costs $2-4 depending on size/retailer, but everything on Amazon was in the $12-15 dollar range. You can usually buy a dozen quart jars cheaper than that!

Did some calling around today and Save A Lot grocery store in the next town over had some, so we are good for the year.

However, if any of you may need jars and or lids, you'd better start looking locally soon, or may have to pay the outrageous online prices.

Reactions: Like 4 | Thank You! 1 | +Karma 1 | Sincere 2


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## gman2431 (Aug 23, 2020)

Same thing here... we just did 30 quarts of peaches the other day and are now low again on lids. Lids aren't bad to find but jars are about impossible (we have a ton of em) so i looked on Amazon and it was 40 bucks a 12 pack of quarts...

Reactions: Agree 1


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## vegas urban lumber (Aug 23, 2020)

wife just found a decent volume available at our local target store. anyone in a jam let me know and i'll buy and ship?

Reactions: Like 3


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## Nature Man (Aug 24, 2020)

Lesson learned: Pays to shop around! Amazon is not the deal it used to be! Chuck

Reactions: Like 1 | Agree 2


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## T. Ben (Aug 24, 2020)

My wife does a little canning,the stores in the bigger towns around don’t have much if any lids or jars,but a little grocery store in a little town we go through,and stop for a couple beverages on the way home,has what she needs.

Reactions: Like 2


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## Karl_TN (Aug 24, 2020)

The canning shelves at my local Walmart was practically bare last night. Did manage to buy a 4 pack of half-pints jars with wide mouth lids for the same price that lids alone are selling for on Amazon.

Reactions: Like 1


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## Herb G. (Aug 24, 2020)

My local Mom & Pop hardware store has a whole section for home canning. I mean like 12 shelves 25 feet long.
Last time I was in there back in January of this year, both sides were completely empty.
They have been empty since then too.

Reactions: Like 1


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## Maverick (Aug 24, 2020)

I don't doing any canning, but this thread peaked my curiosity on what might be causing the shortage. i.e. is it demand from so many people at home and trying to preserve food....or is a supply problem because the manufacturing had to cut back for a multitude of potential reasons (or both).

I didn't find my answer, but I did notice that Ball seems to have lids on sale. I was able to place an order in the cart without getting a popup saying they were out of stock or back ordered. Something to consider if you can't find any locally.


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## trc65 (Aug 24, 2020)

I'm guessing most places only stock so many supplies, and don't order more until the next season. Couple that with record amounts of seed sales (based on what I saw, or rather didn't see in the stores this spring), and people expanding gardens, or planting one for the first time, and you have a shortage. Probably a fair amount of hoarding too (if the shelves are almost empty, I'd better buy more, just in case). 

Usually, stocks get lower this time of year, but I've never seen empty shelves. There has always been a large amount of jars available this time of year as well.

Made the comment the other day that I hope we don't see record amounts of botulism this winter....

Reactions: Like 1 | Agree 1


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## gman2431 (Aug 24, 2020)

trc65 said:


> I'm guessing most places only stock so many supplies, and don't order more until the next season. Couple that with record amounts of seed sales (based on what I saw, or rather didn't see in the stores this spring), and people expanding gardens, or planting one for the first time, and you have a shortage. Probably a fair amount of hoarding too (if the shelves are almost empty, I'd better buy more, just in case).
> 
> Usually, stocks get lower this time of year, but I've never seen empty shelves. There has always been a large amount of jars available this time of year as well.
> 
> Made the comment the other day that I hope we don't see record amounts of botulism this winter....



I will echo what you just said! Its amazing how many people I know that never had a garden do now! Now these people are looking to preserve what they just grew. 

With all the shortages and hoarding this c19 caused its not surprising... throw a stimulus check and a redicioulous amount of unemployment money at people stuck at home (at least in my state) this is what ya get. 

And about the botulism... i stopped at my neighbors one day while he was "canning" and it was a recipe for disaster. I got him back straightened around and told him to dump anything he has made prior to that. He gave me an odd look, so I suggested at least taking the rings off, so the lids can pop and grow mold as an indicator of things going bad. Still at that i would not trust it nor eat at his house for awhile....!

Reactions: Like 2


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## Karl_TN (Aug 24, 2020)

gman2431 said:


> I will echo what you just said! Its amazing how many people I know that never had a garden do now! Now these people are looking to preserve what they just grew.
> 
> With all the shortages and hoarding this c19 caused its not surprising... throw a stimulus check and a redicioulous amount of unemployment money at people stuck at home (at least in my state) this is what ya get.
> 
> And about the botulism... i stopped at my neighbors one day while he was "canning" and it was a recipe for disaster. I got him back straightened around and told him to dump anything he has made prior to that. He gave me an odd look, so I suggested at least taking the rings off, so the lids can pop and grow mold as an indicator of things going bad. Still at that i would not trust it nor eat at his house for awhile....!



Yikes, I just read this regarding Botulism: "One teaspoonful is enough to kill 100,000 people". What did your neighbor do so wrong so we can learn from his deadly mistake?

Reactions: Like 1


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## gman2431 (Aug 24, 2020)

Karl_TN said:


> Yikes, I just read this regarding Botulism: "One teaspoonful is enough to kill 100,000 people". What did your neighbor do so wrong so we can learn from his deadly mistake?



ZERO sanitizing.... plus some of his times were way off for boiling. Botulism is invisible.

Reactions: Like 1


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## FranklinWorkshops (Aug 24, 2020)

My wife canned 12 quarts of tomatoes today. After reading here about lid shortages, I went to a Food Lion near us and got their next-2-last box of rings and lids. We are set now for the peaches.

Reactions: Like 4


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## Wildthings (Aug 24, 2020)

Ok after reading all this and being confused from the title... I get it now!! PSA Doesn't mean Prostate-Specific Antigen; it means Public Service Announcement DOH!

Reactions: Funny 5


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## trc65 (Aug 24, 2020)

Where's Marc with his acronym list?

Reactions: Like 1 | Funny 2


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## FranklinWorkshops (Aug 24, 2020)

Just for interest, I checked the Walmart on-line price for the rings and lids I bought today at Food Lion. I paid $6.99 for a 12 pack. Current price at Walmart is $17.98.





__





Robot or human?






www.walmart.com


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## trc65 (Aug 24, 2020)

At the Save A Lot, I paid $4.89 for the wide mouth lids/bands and $3.89 for the narrow mouth.

No wonder Wal-Mart isn't restocking their canning supplies, they're selling them for triple the price online vs in the stores.

Reactions: Agree 2


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## Herb G. (Aug 25, 2020)

trc65 said:


> At the Save A Lot, I paid $4.89 for the wide mouth lids/bands and $3.89 for the narrow mouth.
> No wonder Wal-Mart isn't restocking their canning supplies, they're selling them for triple the price online vs in the stores.


They've been doing that for a long time.
Quick little story for you. 

I was sent on a service call awhile back, probably 15 years ago.
The basement of the home I went to was stacked floor to ceiling with canned goods.
Way too old to determine what was in them, but probably 2500 qt. jars.
I'd hate to be the guy who had to drag all that crap out of the basement of that place.

Reactions: Agree 3


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## trc65 (Aug 25, 2020)

That's scary! We will occasionally keep some things for up to three years (pickled items and jams), but everything else gets dumped at two years old.

Reactions: Agree 1


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## Herb G. (Aug 25, 2020)

trc65 said:


> That's scary! We will occasionally keep some things for up to three years (pickled items and jams), but everything else gets dumped at two years old.


That's a good idea.


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## FranklinWorkshops (Aug 26, 2020)

Some items last a long time. We had lost track of some concord grape jelly that my wife made in 2001. Found it last year. Upon opening, we smelled it and I volunteered to taste it. There has been some degradation but not much and the taste was normal.

Reactions: Like 3


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## gman2431 (Aug 26, 2020)

19 year old jelly?  you're braver than I by testing it...


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## Gdurfey (Aug 26, 2020)

I remember mom finally getting done canning.....after her office job and dinner (she was one of those super moms) and finally getting to sit down in her easy chair. And then the jars would start popping. She got up one night and checked them as she hadn't counted enough and sure enough several had not sealed. She finally read in the paper there were bad seals; folks lost a lot of food that year. This was back in the mid-70s. She worked so hard on that canning but when we moved to Arkansas we ate on that produce for the next 2 years. Dad never did have a great garden in AR; the area we lived had horrible soil. All of the above brings back fond memories as I was the one picking and snapping the beans so they would be ready when mom got home.

Reactions: Like 3


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## FranklinWorkshops (Aug 26, 2020)

I've had 90 year old wine that was excellent. Age is only relative, my friend. Chemistry is amazing.

Reactions: Like 2 | Agree 1


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## Sprung (Aug 26, 2020)

We're in the first year gardening group. Though we did have one for a year a while ago when in MN. It wasn't so much COVID, but rather something we had been wanting to do, but finally were able to after moving here.

Knowing that we'd have stuff to can, we picked up some supplies earlier in the summer, and picked up more once Fleet Farm had their big stock of canning supplies available. New to the gardening/canning game, but knew early on that seed shortages would certainly turn into canning supplies shortages.

Reactions: Like 2


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## Eric Rorabaugh (Aug 26, 2020)

When I'm able to plant a garden again, I'll order heirloom seeds.

Reactions: Like 1 | Agree 1


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