GOSHEN —
GOSHEN — Volunteers working in two shifts began eight days of meat canning Monday in Goshen as part of the annual project sponsored by the Mennonite Central Committee.
The canning operation has taken place for 64 years at Goshen and for the past 14 years the canning has taken place at The Depot, said Stanley Pletcher, New Paris, director of the project this year.
According to an MCC publication, “Canned meat from MCC provides a substantial protein source to communities impacted by war, disaster and malnutrition. Ten to 15 people can be fed with the contents of one 28-ounce can.”
The Goshen-based project will preserve 68,000 pounds of turkey thighs that are shipped here from suppliers in Virginia and Ohio, Pletcher explained. Work continues at The Depot through Jan. 25.
There are 150 volunteers daily working two shifts from 6 a.m. to 2 p.m. and 2 to 10 p.m. The volunteers come from 270 churches and Amish districts in the area.
“There are different volunteers every day,” Pletcher said. The area participants and organizations also contributed $140,000 to pay for this canning effort.
The project will seal cut-up boneless turkey thighs in two-pound cans, cook the meat in steamers, then clean and label the cans for distribution around the world. The canned meat is distributed in 23 countries, including Canada and the U.S., as well as Cuba and Haiti.
The operation, in a warehouse area at The Depot, is takes place under strict sanitation conditions, Pletcher said. A USDA inspector visits the site two times each day.
A crew of six volunteers operate the canning operation, which is done in a semi-trailer, across the U.S. and Canada from October to May each year.
Local News
Related Photos
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Laban Hochstetler, Middlebury places labeled cans on a chute to send them to Elvie Bontrager, who places the canned meat in boxes. Hochstetler served on the MCC canning committee for 32 years, many years serving as treasurer. ROD ROWE THE GOSHEN NEWS
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Working at the end of the canning line, Elvie Bontrager, Middlebury, at left, helps Ryun Lawrence, Newton, Kan., place cans of turkey into a hopper before the cans are cooked in a steamer, similar to canning with a pressure cooker. ROD ROWE | THE GOSHEN NEWS
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Elam Weaver, New Paris, removes the cans of turkey meat from a hopper after they have been steam cooked. The two-pound cans are washed, dried, labeled and boxed for shipping on this line at The Depot. ROD ROWE THE GOSHEN NEWS
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Cecil Tucker,Depot buildings manager, left, and Linda Pletcher, New Paris, glue labels on the canned turkey at the canning operation at The Depot. ROD ROWE THE GOSHEN NEWS
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Dan Beachy, foreground, cuts the boneless turkey thigh meat into two-inch chunks for canning this week at The Depot. Beachy, who worked as manager at The Depot store for 13 years, said he has volunteed in the canning project for the past 40 years. ROD ROWE THE GOSHEN NEWS
MCC meat canning begins Monday
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