Fear of Botchulism from canning

[christian1971]

Not sure I spelled poison correctly. I am tempted to can, but have great fear of getting sick if not done correctly.

[Worth1]

You shouldn't be scared of it just follow the directions ans you will be fine.
If you have any questions feel free to ask here and many of us will help you in any way we can.
This is the very best place to come to for canning and preserving questions.

Worth

[pmcgrady]

Botulism is rare in the US...
You would have to screw up a pressure canner recipe pretty bad.

[pondgardener]

Take a look at the current Ball canning book, either checking it out from a library, buying it or borrowing a friends. A good place to go online is linked below.

http://nchfp.uga.edu/publications/pu...ions_usda.html

George

[clkeiper]

Originally Posted by pondgardener

Take a look at the current Ball canning book, either checking it out from a library, buying it or borrowing a friends. A good place to go online is linked below.

http://nchfp.uga.edu/publications/pu...ions_usda.html

George

go look at the one at the library then....
Seriously... go buy one. You will either mess up theirs and have to replace it or want to write in it and can't... they really are cheap enough to buy one and not feel like it was a waste of money, it is a good investment. don't be afraid of canning. follow the directions and use the recommended tools... IE: a pressure canner or a waterbath method.. you must use a pressure canner when a recipe calls for it. Such as greenbeans cannot be waterbath canned. they MUST be pressure canned.. Pumpkin can't be canned at all it must be froze.. those are just a few musts for food safety.
it is not nearly as scary as it used to be since canners are now built with better safety features. Jump in and collect your supplies than keep asking questions.

[BackyardFarm]

Originally Posted by pondgardener

Take a look at the current Ball canning book, either checking it out from a library, buying it or borrowing a friends. A good place to go online is linked below.

http://nchfp.uga.edu/publications/pu...ions_usda.html

George

Yep. Just go buy the Ball book of preserving. It's a great referance to have. Really, as long as you're not playing around with a lower acid recipe (without knowing what you're doing) or doing something really scary like canning mashed potatoes you should be fine.

Start by canning something high acid and high pectin like cranberries if you like. It's really hard to mess up cranberry jelly/jam/preserves.

[BackyardFarm]

And if pressure canning makes you nervous, stick to just water bath canning.

I can't pressure can because I have a glass top stove (and I rent...my landlord would have kittens if I broke the stove) so I use a waterbath canner...you can still can quite a few things (including many tomato recipes) with just a waterbath canner! Bonus: they cost about $25 vs $80-150 for a pressure canner.

[brownrexx]

Originally Posted by pmcgrady

Botulism is rare in the US...

No really so rare really. The spores are actually found in the soil and even in honey which is why you shouldn't feed it to babies.

HOWEVER the risk from canning is very low if it is done properly and it is not so complicated if you read the Ball book and use the proper equipment like canning jars and lids, not old mayonnaise jars and things like that.

Pay attention to the number of minutes needed in a water bath and things like that and you will be fine.

[Worth1]

Yeah and dont answer the door and end up talking to some fanatics for an hour and over process you pickles like I did one time.

Worth

[pmcgrady]

Originally Posted by brownrexx

No really so rare really. The spores are actually found in the soil and even in honey which is why you shouldn't feed it to babies.

HOWEVER the risk from canning is very low if it is done properly and it is not so complicated if you read the Ball book and use the proper equipment like canning jars and lids, not old mayonnaise jars and things like that.

Pay attention to the number of minutes needed in a water bath and things like that and you will be fine.

There are a few types of botulism, food borne, an infection from an open sore/cut, or young children get intestinal botulism...none are very common where I live... Not sure where you live, but wouldn't worry about it too much.

[coronabarb]

Christian,

Go to the NCHFP link above and read all the info there. When they test recipes, they leave a bit of wiggle room for safety. Don't be tempted to shortcut or change recipes or can something according to a food blog. If you have a county extension office nearby, call and ask if they have canning classes. And yes, start with a Ball book and water bath canning.

High acid fruits won't support the growth of botulism (melons, figs, asian pears are not high acid). Botulism needs low acid (higher than 4.6 on the pH scale), room temps, and lack of oxygen. The conditions inside a sealed canning jar is the perfect environment for that. Do lots of reading at trusted sources . Have respect for what botulism can do. Yes, it is rare but it is out there. Two elderly folks just died in the Spokane WA area a few weeks ago from improperly canned food. With the right knowledge, you won't have to fear it.

There used to be an online class offered by NCHFP but it is no longer available. Btw, you are able to can pumpkin as long as it is cubed...never pureed.

http://nchfp.uga.edu/publications/pu...ions_usda.html

[brownrexx]

According to the CDC there are only 110 cases in the United States annually and only 25% of those are from food.

Probably one reason that these numbers are low is because not so many people do home canning any more. You might see a different number if, rather than looking at 110 cases from the entire population of the US, you calculated the number of cases based on how many people can their own food. I'll bet that would be a much higher percentage.

This is not a lot of cases or a big risk but it's so easy to follow proper canning directions so why take a risk?

Just follow the proper canning instructions and don't do things differently just "because Grandma did it that way and they didn't die".

[ContainerTed]

I did a lot of "Water Bath" canning and then bought a Presto Pressure canner. I now use it for everything. I can leave the lid untightened and do Water Bath or just do everything under pressure.

The Presto Pressure Canners all come with a booklet of instructions and time/pressures. The Booklet is identical (word for word) the instructions given at the link mentioned several times above.

http://nchfp.uga.edu/publications/pu...ions_usda.html

I would recommend going ahead and buying the Pressure Canner to do both jobs with the one item. Most folks feel better if they know they are killing pathogens and bacteria with the canning process. Pressure canning gets the higher temperatures that kill more of the bad stuff.

Of course, making jams and jellies is a whole 'nuther different story.

[Worth1]

I want to assure you the presto canner will work on a glass top stove.
I have done the research not only with Presto but with my GE glass top stove.

By the way if you just buy the old school granite water bath canner kettle the glass top will not get hot enough to boil water.
I have to use my tri clad stainless to do it.

Worth

[ChiliPeppa]

Glad you posted that Worth. I have a glass stove top and been thinking of getting a pressure canner.