CORVALLIS, Ore. ‚ A new partnership between Oregon State University Extension Service and Bi-Mart stores brings food preservation and safety information directly to shoppers throughout the Pacific Northwest.
Food preservation supplies have been in high demand in recent years, and this season is no exception.
Extension-designed posters now hang in key aisles — canning, hunting, drying — across the employee-owned chain’s 80 stores in Oregon, Washington and Idaho. Shoppers can also pick up brochures or scan a QR code on the posters to access the Extension Home Food Safety and Preservation Program website.
The learning tools come just as food preservation season is ramping up. Interest is expected to soar as more people grow their own food — a trend that has surged this year.
“Gardening — my goodness, gardening is crazy,” said Don Leber, vice president of advertising and marketing for Bi-Mart. “All these people are thinking, ‘What will we do with all this food?’ We’re thinking of a lot of the newbies who don’t know how to get started. And now with OSU’s help, we’ve got the information. It’s a match made in heaven.”
Food preservation supplies have been in high demand in recent years, and this season is no exception.
“Canning and food storage are huge this year,” Leber said. “It’s out of control. All of our food preservation items have sold like crazy over the last four months. People are home gardening and putting up food.”
Accurate information more important than ever
Preserving food — whether by canning, freezing, drying, pickling or making jerky — declined for decades as baby boomers moved away from the practice. But now, their children are embracing it again. Beginners especially need accurate, research-based guidance, said Nellie Oehler, food safety specialist with Oregon State Extension and one of the founders of the Master Food Preserver program.
“It’s marvelous that Bi-Mart took this on,” Oehler said. “The posters look so nice and they’re all over the Pacific Northwest. It’s a great way to get Extension information out there. People are looking for ways of sustaining themselves.”
Wilco stores — 15 locations in Oregon — have also signed on to carry the posters and brochures.
A long history of support and outreach
The Master Food Preserver program launched in 1980 in response to growing demand for food preservation knowledge. Volunteers were trained, and as the program expanded, it became clear that a statewide hotline was needed.
“We were getting a lot of calls at the local Extension offices,” Oehler said. “The Extension Service has always been known for research-based food preservation information.”
By 1990, the hotline was up and running. Initially, it served only the 541 area code. But as interest grew, the number changed to a toll-free line to serve all of Oregon.
“Old methods were popping up that weren’t safe,” said Oehler, who grew up on a farm and still walks into her cellar to grab jars of preserved food. “Our No. 1 goal was and is to prevent foodborne illnesses.”
Hotline calls spiked during Y2K — and may again
In 1999, as concerns about Y2K grew, the hotline received more than 10,000 calls — a record that could be challenged this year given the resurgence in interest.
The hotline, along with posters, brochures and online tools, helps ensure food safety at home.
“I think if you use our publications and use the canning app — which is really good — you’re going to find canning is not that intimidating,” Oehler said. “It’s actually kind of fun, and you have something to show for your work.”
Previously titled OSU Extension and Bi-Mart team up to offer food preservation information
