Food canning first happened in the 18th century, but in jars! Due to the demands of long sea voyages, armies away from home for long periods, and the increasing needs of urban populations, effective means of food preservation were required. At that time, preservation methods included drying, smoking, pickling, and salting food, but they were unsuitable for preserving food for a long period of time.

Canning is a method of preserving food in airtight, vacuum-sealed containers and thermal processing sufficient to allow storage of food at normal household temperatures. Canning is one of the safest ways to preserve food. To preserve the highest quality, the shelf life of canned food is at least two years, and the level of vitamins in canned food remains stable throughout the shelf life as long as the container is not damaged in any way.

Canning has no effect on proteins, carbohydrates, and fats. If you take canned meat, for example, you will have the same amount of protein and fat after canning as you did before. In general, canning does not seem to affect the nutritional values ​​of foods much. From that point of view, you don’t have to regret turning to a can for a quick and convenient meal. Your fresh vegetables can lose more vitamins if they sit on the storage shelf for a week. Canning is a useful way to preserve vitamins, as the concentrations of some vitamins can drop by 50% within the first 7 days after harvest when stored at room temperature.

Canned foods only need to be heated before serving because they have already been cooked in the can. By retaining cooking juices, canned foods lose very little of their nutritional value. Canned poultry and fish, both protein foods, are comparable to their freshly cooked counterparts in nutritional value. The protein is not lost during the canning process. And some varieties of canned fish tend to have higher levels of calcium than their freshly cooked counterparts.

Many canned fruits and vegetables are high in vitamin A; Canned goods have comparable levels of vitamin A to their fresh or frozen counterparts. Canned foods retain vitamin C for up to two years because the can is completely sealed and the food inside is cooked and stored under vacuum. Canned pineapple, asparagus, and grapefruit are good sources of vitamin C.

There is a huge variety of canned foods, which differ both in the type of ingredients and in the method of preparation. In the end, it can be clearly stated that it is better to opt for canned food than spoiled food.