When 25-year-old Kathleen Moss cracks open a jar of her carrot cake jam, not only is it delicious, it's also homemade.
Moss of Salisbury works on an organic farm and receives a bounty of fresh fruits and vegetables. This past year, tired of seeing any food go to waste, Moss began packing away the leftovers in mason jars.
The experience began with jams and jellies, but now Moss has moved on to pickling cantaloupe. Moss said she enjoys exercising control over her food sources and being less dependent on big grocers.
"I have a ton of friends in the past year or two who have gotten into it. There's a boom in the 20-something crowd," she said.
Home food preservation — once an activity associated with older generations — has taken root with a younger demographic who sees it as way to be self-sufficient and maybe save money.
"It's not just the grandmothers of the middle U.S. that are doing the canning. It's the younger ones," said Brenda Schmidt, the brand manager for Jarden Home Brands, the maker of ball jars and other canning products.
Thanks in part to this changing face of canners, nationwide sales of ball jars are up 5 percent this year, Schmidt said. The sales increase follows two years of double-digit growth, she said.
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Health threat
Canning newcomers must practice food safety because improperly stored foods — especially those with a low acid, sugar or salt content — can become a breeding ground for the toxic spores that cause botulism.
Botulism is a potentially fatal form of paralysis. Its threat is why you should steer clear of grandma's canning recipe if you aren't sure it follows current food safety guidelines, said Elizabeth L. Andress, the project director of the National Center for Food Preservation at the University of Georgia.
"The science has changed. What someone did 40 to 50 years ago might have changed, because back then somebody didn't know better," Andress said.
Home canners should boil the food they are canning or use a pressure device to get the desired effect. A pressure canner can reach 240 degrees Fahrenheit and is safer to use with high-risk foods, Andress said.
Virginia Gambrell said the threat of botulism intimidated her at first but she's had no problems since she began home canning in June. The 23-year-old Salisbury University student has created her own colorful salsas, sauces and pickles without any problems.
Gambrell said home canning ties in her with cooking hobby and interest in self-sustainability.
"It's old-fashioned to do. I like it, it's fun," she said.
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New life for a lost art
Getting started in home canning isn't difficult, said Krista Scudlark, the owner of Backyard Jams and Jellies in Milton, who first took canning up as a hobby 20 years ago when her children were young.
"It's not hard to can. You just mash up fruits and add sugar and you're good to go," Scudlark said.
The University of Maryland Extension office has seen a statewide surge of interest in food preservation, whether it be from people wanting to home can or flash-freeze vegetables at home, said Patsy Ezell, the assistant director for family and consumer sciences.
"My personal opinion is that a lot of food preservation is stemming from that desire to know where your food comes from," Ezell said.
That desire to follow the food source has been a big selling point for Moss, the 25-year-old with a knack for creating creative fruit preserves.
Moss, who has also made red wine jelly and blueberry jams, said that canned items make great stocking stuffers. She's excited about her next project, which will involve apples from the fall harvest. While not eating it right away is sometimes tough, there are perks to waiting.
"I say it's a gift to my future self," Moss said.
