Canned foods: Saving produce from the culinary graveyard

Published 10:25 am Saturday, February 14, 2026

Opening the bottom drawer of a refrigerator can sometimes be a frightening experience. Most people will admit to opening it and discovering that the once-fresh produce they bought with last month’s groceries has turned into a science experiment. Does this sound all too familiar? Try balancing fresh-produce purchases with canned foods on the next trip to the grocery store. This will keep flavor and nutrients in meals while preventing the refrigerator from becoming a culinary graveyard of good intentions.

Contrary to popular belief, canned fruits, vegetables and other foods can have great nutritional value. That is why the Canned Food Information Council established February as National Canned Food Month in 1987. Now observed annually, people highlight these values throughout the month, while also addressing common misconceptions about canned foods.

“It is true that nutrients like the B vitamins are lower in canned vegetables than in fresh and frozen vegetables,” said Carol Connell, a health and wellness specialist with Alabama Extension at Auburn University. “This is because many of the nutrients are heat sensitive, and the canning process affects them. However, canned vegetables still contain adequate amounts of nutrients, with the possible exception of vitamin C, which is extremely heat sensitive.”

Frozen vegetables do offer shelf stability with higher nutrient levels initially. However, Connell said the shelf life of canned vegetables is longer, and the nutrients will be stable for longer.

Watch Sodium Levels
When shopping, the main thing to watch for is the product’s sodium, which is often greater than in fresh produce. Canned food labels list the amounts and daily value percentage of each nutrient in one serving of that product. If a label lists the daily value of sodium at 5%, then that product is considered low in sodium. However, daily values of 20% or more are higher-sodium foods.

“The American Heart Association recommends that people consume no more than 2,300 milligrams of sodium per day, with optimal amounts being closer to 1,500 milligrams per day,” Connell said. “If available, buy canned vegetables that have no salt added. These are now much easier to find and are often the same price as the salted versions.”

If a no-added-salt version is unavailable, people can drain, rinse and cook the vegetable in water or low-sodium broth. Connell said this will potentially rinse away some of the water-soluble vitamins but is a good option for those who need to restrict their sodium intake.

Avoid Added Sugar
Like canned vegetables, some vitamin levels in canned fruits are slightly less than in their fresh counterparts. However, Connell said buying canned fruits is a great way to avoid wasting fresh produce and maybe even save money.

“Fruits are great sources of B vitamins, and citrus such as oranges and grapefruits provide high amounts of vitamin C,” Connell said. “The nutrient stability of canned fruits is high, and the fruit quality will last much longer than fresh fruit.”

One thing that shoppers need to watch for is added sugar. The American Heart Association recommends that only 10% of daily calories come from added sugars. The recently released Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommend no more than 10 grams of added sugar per meal. For context, a ½-cup serving of fruit cocktail in heavy syrup can have 22 grams of sugar. The same amount of fruit cocktail with no sugar added is much less sugar, at 8 grams.

“To reduce your intake of added sugars, purchase fruit that is either canned in 100% juice or has no added sugar,” Connell said. “Draining or rinsing fruit with added sugar will help a little, but since the cost of fruit in 100% juice is similar, that is the better option.”

If the price is a sticking point, Connell recommends looking for generic or store brands, which may be less expensive.

“The fruit may not look as pretty as the fruit in name-brand options, but the nutrient value and safety are exactly the same,” Connell said.

More Information
The videos, “What’s That Nutrition Label Mean?” and “Grocery Shopping: Tips on Finding Your Way Around the Store,” offer a lot of great information to help with grocery store hauls. Find these videos on the Alabama YouTube channel at www.youtube.com/@AlabamaExtension.