Canning

Every year MCC’s Mobile Meat Canner travels across the United States and Canada meeting volunteers who prepare cans of turkey, beef, chicken and pork to be sent around the world. Over 30,000 people a year volunteer to fill, weigh, wash and label every can.

Four canner operators travel with the meat canner to 34 different locations across the US and Canada and help the volunteers at each location. Apply to be a canner operator.

See what a day in the life of a canner is like, and read the reflections of beginning canner, Tristan Pries.

Once they're finished, cans are shipped to our partners, providing important nutrients when meat is hard to purchase.

For example, in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK, or North Korea), where meat is scarce, MCC shares canned meat with our partners to supplement meals for children as well as patients with tuberculosis or hepatitis.

774,067 pounds of canned meat shipped last year to Burkina Faso, Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (North Korea), Haiti, Lebanon, Ukraine, Zambia, Canada and the U.S., including Puerto Rico

How canning works

MCC photo/Anthony J. Siemens
Step 1: The mobile cannery arrives at the location, is unfolded and attached to a building.

MCC photo/John Hillegass
Step 2: The boneless and skinless meat arrives in 2,000lb or 40lb boxes encased in ice.

Then the meat is ground or cut by hand into 1x1 inch chunks. The four types of meat MCC cans are: turkey, beef, chicken and pork. At this point, the meat is around 35F degrees—just above freezing.

MCC photo/John Hillegass
Then the meat is ground or cut by hand into 1x1 inch chunks. The four types of meat MCC cans are: turkey, beef, chicken and pork. At this point, the meat is around 35F degrees—just above freezing.

Step 3: The ground or cut meat is brought onto the canner and emptied into a large, steam jacketed kettle, which uses steam to heat the meat. While it’s heating, the meat is stirred using two large plastic stirring sticks and salt is added. For turkey, chicken and pork, stirring continues until the meat reaches a temperature of at least 40F degrees. Beef is heated to 160F degrees.

MCC photo/Anthony J. Siemens
Step 3: The ground or cut meat is brought onto the canner and emptied into a large, steam jacketed kettle, which uses steam to heat the meat. While it’s heating, the meat is stirred using two large plastic stirring sticks and salt is added. For turkey, chicken and pork, stirring continues until the meat reaches a temperature of at least 40F degrees. Beef is heated to 160F degrees.

MCC photo/Anthony J. Siemens
Step 4: Once the meat is at the correct temperature, volunteers put the meat into cans.

MCC photo/Anthony J. Siemens
Then the cans are weighed and volunteers add or remove meat until they weigh between 1.92-1.97lbs.

Step 5: Then a canner operator takes the weighed cans and puts them through the sealing machine. The sealed cans are caught by volunteers who stack the cans into an empty basket.

MCC photo/Anthony J. Siemens
Step 5: Then a canner operator takes the weighed cans and puts them through the sealing machine. The sealed cans are caught by volunteers who stack the cans into an empty basket.

Step 6: The baskets are then placed into a retort, which is a large pressure cooker, where they cook for approximately 135 minutes at 246F with a pressure of approximately 15psi. After the processing is complete, the baskets are cooled using a continuous flow of water until the cans are safe to handle.

MCC photo/Anthony J. Siemens
Step 6: The baskets are then placed into a retort, which is a large pressure cooker, where they cook for approximately 135 minutes at 246F with a pressure of approximately 15psi. After the processing is complete, the baskets are cooled using a continuous flow of water until the cans are safe to handle.

MCC photo/Anthony J. Siemens
Step 7: The freshly cooked and cooled cans are individually hand-washed and dried off by volunteers.

MCC photo/Anthony J. Siemens
Washing the cans is important to remove any baked on meat residue and so that the label can be applied.

MCC photo/Anthony J. Siemens
Step 8: Volunteers apply a label to the finished cans indicating what kind of meat is inside.

Step 9: The labeled cans go through a printer which applies the production and expiration dates, before they are placed in boxes with 24 cans in each one.

MCC photo/Anthony J. Siemens
Step 9: The labeled cans go through a printer which applies the production and expiration dates, before they are placed in boxes with 24 cans in each one.

Step 10: In a brief stay at a warehouse, the canned meat is incubated and held to make sure it’s safe. Then MCC sends canned meat (along with other material resources) around the world to those in need.

MCC photo/Rhoda Shirk
Step 10: In a brief stay at a warehouse, the canned meat is incubated and held to make sure it’s safe. Then MCC sends canned meat (along with other material resources) around the world to those in need.

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