Home Food Preservation

About Our Home Food Preservation Programs

The number of consumers preserving foods at home continues to increase, as more consumers emphasize greater control over what they eat and where their food comes from. Failure to adequately preserve foods in the home can result in foodborne illness. Many families don’t have the knowledge to safely preserve their food at home. Family and Consumer Sciences (FCS) agents provide a variety of opportunities to fill this educational need.

Throughout the state, FCS agents also provide a variety of home food preservation workshops designed to teach participants how to safely can, freeze, or dry their own foods. The types of food preservation support provided include:

• General informational canning classes
• Canning demonstrations at community events
• Hands-on boiling water bath canning classes to teach how to safely can high acid foods
• Hands-on pressure canning classes to teach how to safety can low acid foods
• Pressure dial gauge inspections
• Individualized home preserver support via phone/e-mail

For more information about canning classes and support in your area, contact your local extension agent.

Virtual Home Food Preservation Course

This self-paced virtual course will teach you how to safely preserve your fresh foods for year-round enjoyment using techniques such as canning, freezing, dehydrating and fermenting.

You'll learn the science behind these techniques and receive step by step guidance on how to do them at home. After registering, you can complete the course at your own pace.

Click here to learn more & enroll in the course

Online Instructional Videos

National Center for Home Food Preservation

Websites

• National Center for Home Food Preservation
• Virginia Cooperative Extension Master Gardener Program Resources for Vegetable and Fruit Gardening
• Virginia Tech Department of Food Science and Technology