Math

Today I did a little math and figured out about how much money I will be saving by eating my fresh canned goods all winter. Here it is.
I figured a rough estimate (on the low end) of $140 for all of the supplies I bought including, 4 oz jelly jars, 12 oz jelly jars, 1/2 pint jars, pint jars, vinnegar, canning salt, fruit pectin, canning tools, and of course, a preassure canner.
At the grocery store today I wrote down the prices of the things I would have bought. Not that I would have typically bought these canned food items at the grocery store, but since I had the fresh food and needed to do something with it... I canned it. My estimate came out to about $170 dollars. Most of that cost was 30 jars of jelly.
Now I realize this is a very rough estimate, but if it is even close, then I have already broke even on my investment, or at least come close.
But of course we have to take into account the fact that normally I would not be buying some of this stuff in the grocery store, so if I had not canned okra, for example, I still would not have spent any money buying it. So perhaps it was actually alot more work and money for me in the end, even though I acquired the food free of charge.
On the other hand, I can reuse the jars for quite a few seasons, and the pressure canner and accessories should last for many years. So every year that I can preserve free fruits and veggies, the cost goes down. Next year, if I just buy jars, salt, pectin, vinnegar, and spices (even though I won't need as many jars), my cost will already be cut in half, due to the price of the canner.
Of course all of this is pretty irrelevent, but I feel so good knowing that the food I will be eating was grown locally and that I spent my time doing something I enjoy instead of walking around a grocery store. And probably most important, in the long run, less and less of my money will support businesses that do so much damage to our health and the envirnment.

Good deal.