A gift of homemade fruit preserves may be a sweet idea, but not practicing proper food safety can lead to a lot of wasted effort. That was the situation for one poster on r/Canning who described receiving home-canned fruit that appeared discolored.
Here's what to know
In a Reddit post, the original poster said their partner received canned fruit from a family member. At a glance, several of the jars looked concerning.
"I took one look at the cans and told him I wouldn't eat any of it," the OP said. "It feels wrong to waste food, but I worry about the safety of these."
Many Reddit users asked about things like the canning date and the storage conditions to assess if the fruit was still safe to eat.
With many details unavailable, most responses leaned toward caution.
"That'd be a hard pass for me," one person said.
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Another added, "You can only know they are safe if you know how they were processed."
Some people pointed out that brown or discolored fruit by itself does not automatically mean it is unsafe. But many said that, paired with rusty lids and other questionable things, was enough to make them uneasy.
More background
Home canning can be an effective way to lower grocery bills, and cut down on food waste. For households building a pantry, it can also offer peace of mind and more control over what they eat.
Another detail commenters highlighted was the ring left on the jars, which they said can be misleading for people new to canning.
People explained that canners generally remove rings after jars have sealed, so any failed seal is easier to notice later.
What can be done?
When in doubt, not eating the food is always a safe choice.
And while the food itself can be questionable, the jars may still be useful. Reusable canning jars can help save money for people who preserve their own food or store dry goods and leftovers in glass containers, as long as the jars are thoroughly cleaned and checked for damage.
Where can I learn more?
Gardeners and home cooks have found plenty of ways to repurpose mason jars and other storage containers around the house.
• Gardeners have turned canning rings into markers to label beds without buying new supplies.
• Zero-waste households are finding all kinds of things to store in cleaned glass jars.
• Home cooks said the perfect size jars from finished jam work well beyond breakfast.
• Frugal homeowners are giving old food jars new jobs as practical storage around the house.
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