Three Saturdays in January 2023, Onslow County residents were taught about canning at the Onslow County Cooperative Extension Office, by Sarah Ware, Family & Consumer Sciences (FCS) Agent.

The first class was free, an Introduction to Canning class, which 19 people attended. A broad overview of canning was talked about, and all of the equipment was laid out for participants to inspect and ask questions about.

Sixteen of those participants signed up for the next water bath canning class. Ellen Shumaker, Director of Outreach for Safe Plates, came down from Raleigh to help with this class. Canning blueberries was a teachable experience for everyone!!

For the pressure canning class, fourteen participants showed up and we canned carrots. Kelly Tyndall, FCS agent in Lenior County joined in to help teach. A lot of questions and hesitations exist around pressure canning. The carrots were canned beautifully. Our southeast district was donated the resources of the two hot plates from Dr. Kirby, Assistant Director of NC State Extension.

The anonymous post surveys for all three classes indicated the level of knowledge was heightened in canning basics, unsafe canning methods, and confidence in hands-on canning. The participants commented that Sarah Ware, FCS agent, was knowledgeable and enthusiastic and that if she did not know the answer, she would find it for you.

Sarah is planning on offering a hands-on Food Preservation series in April, focusing on fermenting, drying and canning different foods.

A special shout out to Dr. Sarah Kirby, Assistant Director of NC State Extension, for donating the resources that made the pressure canning class possible. Also, a warm thank you to Ellen and Kelly for sharing their time and knowledge.