Why Preserve Food?

Food Spoilage

Food spoilage is the process of food becoming unsafe or unacceptable for human consumption. Spoilage is normally caused by the growth of microorganisms in foods. Other losses in quality are caused by natural activities in fresh food tissues, for example, the excessive softening in overripe fruit caused by fruit enzymes. Spoilage and quality losses are partially or completely controlled in properly preserved foods.  Food preservation is the maintenance of safe and nutritious food for an extended period of time. Examples of preserved foods include properly packaged refrigerated, frozen, canned, and dried products.

Objectives of Food Preservation

• The primary objective of food preservation is to prevent food spoilage until it can be consumed. Gardens often produce too much food at one time—more than can be eaten before spoilage sets in.
• Preserving food also offers the opportunity to have a wide variety of foods year-round.
• It’s economic. The motivation for preserving fresh foods, whether from the garden, farm, or market, often includes saving money as well as satisfying personal preferences. There are many variables, however, that affect the cost of home-preserved foods. The true costs include total supplies, equipment, fresh food, human energy, and fuel energy to process and store food.

Where to Start and What to Know

• Review Everyday Food Safety tips
• Get UCANR publication 8121 for tips specific to the Safe Handling of Fruits and Vegetables. Print a handy trifold version in English or Spanish.
• Print Storing Fruits & Vegetables for Better Taste from UC Davis Post Harvest Technology publication 21590, available in English (pictured) and in Spanish.
• Reference Harvesting & Storing Fresh Garden Vegetables from University of Idaho College of Agriculture Bulletin 617
• Read more About Food Preservation -  a little history, commercially available preserved foods; safe home food preservation and science behind it.
• Use research-tested methods when preserving food at home. Refer to our Home Food Preservation Resources page for a list of some trusted sources we use.

Some Foods with Ways Safely Preserve at Home

Click on an food image to read more about the pictured item, including ways to use and preserve safely at home.

These pages introduce a smattering of excellent resources available on the internet. Some may appear on our Home Food Preservation Resources page, while many others are intended to introduce you to various other cooperative extension sites that offer research-based information.
Several food items rely on a single comprehensive UCANR peer-reviewed publication. See the entire UCANR Catalog of Canning and Food Preservation publications. 

NOTE: Research on food preservation is ongoing - recommendations may change. Make sure your preservation information is always current. Always follow up-to-date, tested guidelines and recipes from reliable sources.