Savoie speaks with BDN about how to enjoy summer harvest all year
Kathy Savoie, a University of Maine Cooperative Extension educator and professor, spoke with the Bangor Daily News about how gardeners can use traditional food preservation methods, such as canning, to enjoy the summer harvest throughout the year. “We have seen an increase in the demand for home food preservation education,” Savoie said. “A lot of [interest] lies in wanting to have greater control over knowing what is in the foods that they’re eating. And there is self-sufficiency tied into it as well; having the satisfaction of knowing that they are able to meet their own food needs.” In addition to canning, Savoie said freezing and drying fruits or vegetables are two other ways seasonal foods can be preserved. Savoie oversees the 10-year-old UMaine Extension program that trains master food preserver volunteers who then act as community liaisons on the subject, according to the article. Savoie said she is hopeful that giving consumers the tools to preserve food for future use, will positively affect local growers.