Growing fresh fruits and vegetables became very popular during COVID-19. Families had extra time that they normally didn't have before and a lot of these folks took to the outdoors. They decided to grow gardens for the first time among other activities. The interest in food preservation quickly followed. With this information in mind The Lawrence County Extension Agent for Family and Consumer Sciences (FCS) Agent conducted a Virtual Food Preservation Workshop. This workshop was conducted in collaboration with the Lawrence County Extension Agent for Agriculture and Natural Resources, who provided insight as a subject matter expert in selecting the proper produce for Food Preservation. 

Topics discussed throughout this program included, “The Basics” of Food Preservation, Pressure Canning Safety, Water Bath Canning Safety, Best Practices for Freezing, and Best Practices for Dehydrating. The class met weekly throughout the month of September online. The program had a wide reach both directly and indirectly. 20 individuals were reached directly through “Programs on the Go” Food Preservation Toolkit bags. These “Programs on the Go” contained information on safe food preservation practices, selecting produce, and contained tools to preserve food safely. These kits were available for pick up at the Lawrence county extension office to provide resources for individuals and families to preserve food safely.

Through the online meeting space the Lawrence County Extensions Service was able to indirectly reach 3,154 individuals, with a direct reach of 89 individuals. These individuals liked, commented, and shared the Workshop Videos. During the video in which the ANR agent discussed selecting proper produce for food preservation, 872 individuals were reached.

Participants were asked to complete a survey at the end of the series. The participants who completed the survey were also asked if they had grown a garden this past year. 89% indicated that they had grown a garden that they planned to harvest from for preserving food at home. The sizes of the gardens had a wide range of 2 acres to a few small flowerpots and containers used for gardening. The ANR Extension Agent followed her partnership with this workshop with a series of lesson via social media to discuss other ways of using fresh produce from their garden by sharing NEP recipes with individuals in the community. We hope the enthusiams that was demonstrated towards vegetable gardening continues into the years to come.