Big Players, Big Regulations
Through the 1930s and 1940s, frozen foods and supermarkets were becoming commonplace, and improved transportation networks led to the rise of large warehouses able to distribute canned produce to entire regions. While Utah once relied heavily on local farmers and canneries for sustenance, the reality was that Utah simply didn't have the same farmable land as many nearby areas did, at least in terms of relatively water-hungry produce. The independent canning industry in Utah largely stopped existing by the 1950s, leaving only big players with vast resources. For instance, by this time the cannery in Smithfield had been long been sold to the California Canning Co., which would eventually become Del Monte, one of the nation's largest canning companies. This shift in Utah disproportionately affected the production of fruits and vegetables in Utah, which included Cache Valley's staple crops of peas and sugar beets. A survey conducted in 2015 showed that Utah agriculture is completely or almost completely self sufficient in producing grain and protein (98% and 135%, respectively), but that only three percent of produce consumed in Utah was actually grown in Utah. This number is expected to further decrease in the following decades.
The vast majority of canned produce found on Utah shelves is imported. While this contributes to a myriad of negative effects that could probably be its own blog post, today we will be exploring a seldom-discussed benefit of the consolidation of food distribution. This trend was not specific to Utah - independent canneries everywhere were disappearing. However, it allowed for the federal government to significantly increase safety regulation of canned foods. Imagine you were trying to set strict restrictions on how canneries could source and process food, when there were hundreds of splintered operations processing locally-sourced produce. It would be nearly impossible to enforce. But, if only a handful of key players needed oversight? That would be much more manageable.
Safe and Wholesome
The Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FDCA) was passed in 1938, and some of the first regulations to stem from it involved the canning of acidic tomatoes and tomato paste. While the act covered many facets of the food processing industry, the fact that produce canning in particular was regulated so soon indicates that it was a pressing matter for legislators of the time. In 1958, a law was passed that disallowed the usage of food additives that were not vetted by the government to be safe for use. This proved to be a vital protection during a time when the canneries were experimenting with new preservatives to increase shelf life.
The government also had a vested interest in regulating home canning, which made a resurgence in the 1970s due to "Do-It-Yourself" social movements. In 1977, 59 people fell ill to a debilitating, paralyzing food-borne illness due to a single point of contact - improperly-canned jalapenos at a Mexican restaurant. This led to the tightening of canned food regulations even at the final point of sale. The USDA published an official guide book for home canning in 1988, to spread awareness of proper and safe preservation methods. Even still, the same organization found in 2005 that 57% of home canners regularly use unsafe methods.
Citations
Gregory, Ruth West. "Those Good Peas: The Morgan Canning Company in Smithfield, UT." Utah Historical Quarterly, vol. 36, no. 2, 1968, pp. 169-77.
Strack, Don. "Utah's Canning Industry." Utah History Encyclopedia, https://www.uen.org/utah_history_encyclopedia/c/CANNING.shtml. Accessed 3 Aug. 2025.
“Poll: Utahns Hungry for More Locally Produced Foods.” The Salt Lake Tribune, https://www.sltrib.com/news/2015/08/17/poll-utahns-hungry-for-more-locally-produced-foods/. Accessed 3 Aug. 2025.
“A HISTORY OF FOOD, DRUG REGULATION.” Deseret News, 27 Jun. 1988, https://www.deseret.com/1988/6/27/18769902/a-history-of-food-drug-regulation/.
"How Did We Can?" National Agricultural Library, https://www.nal.usda.gov/exhibits/ipd/canning/timeline-table. Accessed 3 Aug. 2025.