Canning process of blueberries

Fresh berries can be preserved for long-term storage by canning, freezing, and dehydrating. Canning is the general term applied to the process of packaging a food in a container and subjecting it to a thermal process for the purpose of extending its useful life.

The blueberries may either be packed in water or sugar syrup. The water packed product can be used as pie fillings and toppings. The sugar syrup packed berries can be used as dessert fruit.

Water or heavy sugar syrup (50 - 55 °Bx) is added as a packaging medium. Each 444 ml can contain 65.8% blueberries, 8.4% sugar and 25.8% water by weight. The syrup was added at 71˚C.

The cans were heated for eight minutes in a rotary cooker to a final temperature of 93˚C and were cooled to 38˚C in a rotary water bath within 10 minutes.

The cans must be water-cooled as soon as commercial sterility of the product has been reached to prevent over-cooking of the product. This could spoil the appearance, flavor and texture of the product.

Cans of blueberries from the same pallet were randomly sampled as they came off the canning line.
Canning process of blueberries