Home Food Safety and Preservation
A resurgence in home gardening and food production has led to renewed public interest in hands-on home food preservation. Learning and using proper food handling and safety practices for these foods, as well as purchased foods, is essential to prevent food-borne illness.
The information provided below is to help inform you of important food safety issues and of the safest methods for food preservation, food preparation, and food handling in your home kitchen. Using safe practices will not only help you to reduce food-borne illness, they will also help to extend your food's shelf life.
* References to commercial products, trade names, or brand names is for information only, and no endorsement or approval is intended.
The National Center for Home Food Preservation (NCHFP) is a comprehensive source for information and resources on preserving food, and is a good place to start! On their website you will find general information and detailed instruction on canning, freezing, drying, cure and smoking, fermenting, pickling, storing, and jam and jelly making.
UVM Extension Factsheets & Articles
- Blanching & Freezing Vegetables 2 Pages
- Five Steps to Food Safe Fruit and Vegetable Home Gardening 2 pages, 2012
- Garden to Table: Storing Fresh Garden Produce 2 Pages, 2007
- Preparing and Preserving Pesto at Home 2 Pages, Jun 2011
- Preparing and Preserving Salsa at Home 2 Pages, Jun 2011
- Ball Canning Tutorials and Guides
- Egg Safety Tips WCAX, Dec 2012
- National Center for Home Food Preservation (various canning, freezing, dehydrating topics including acidity, altitude, and processing considerations)
- Turkey Safety Tips WCAX, Nov 2012
- University of Maine Cooperative Extension Food Preservation "How To" Videos (includes instruction on how to freeze Strawberries, fiddleheads, rhubarb, green beans, tomatoes; harvest and store apples, onions, pumpkins; preserve fresh greens, raspberries; make strawberry jam, raspberry jam and more)
'Across the Fence' Videos
- Making Jams, Jellies & Butters (7/22/11, requires Flash Player)
- Making & Storing Salsa & Pesto (7/16/10, requires Windows Media Player)
- Preserving Green Beens (6/16/10, requires Windows Media Player)
- Preserving Tomatoes (6/15/10, requires Windows Media Player)
- National Center for Home Food Preservation (videos, slide shows, graphics, tutorials)
- Colorado Cooperative Extension "Food Preservation" publications (click on "Nutrition, Health & Food Safety" then scroll down page for "food preservation" resources)
- Missouri Extension Quality For Keeps: Freezing Vegetables
- National Center for Home Food Preservation
- North Carolina State University Cooperative Extension - "The Food Keeper: Consumer Guide to Food Quality & Safe Handling"
- Oregon State University Food Preservation
- Partnership for Food Safety Education: Home Food Safety
- Penn State University Safe Home Food Preservation Methods
- University of Georgia Cooperative Extension
- University Nebraska-Lincoln "Foods & Nutrition" publications (scroll down page for "preservation" resources)
- University of New Hampshire Cooperative Extension "Preserving Food Safely at Home" [ includes canning guides, "Let's Preserve" factsheet series, pressure guage testing, tested recipes ]
- U.S. Government Food Safety Information
Last modified October 07 2015 03:21 PM