Why Classico tomato sauces are such a good deal

The 750ml jars of Classico tomato sauces are also canning jars with a standard opening (70 mm).   This means I get a free canning jar with each jar of sauce I buy.   I know a lot of people do not can and this makes no difference to them, but it should because they are not only good for re-using for canning, but they make good storage jars as well.

The 750 ml size of canning jar is not one normally available but I have a more than large enough stock of them because of all the tomato sauce we buy.    It also means that each time I buy the sauce I can reuse the jar and save money on not having to buy more canning jars.

The cost to buy new canning jars is about about $10 to $12 a dozen though this includes a set of lids with rings which is a $4 to $5 value.  The net cost of buying jars is about $0.55 a jar.    So each time I buy Classico tomato sauces I effectively am getting an extra $0.55 value.   It means that the $3.50 typical price for the sauce is really only just under $3 for me because I get the jar.  I not only save money, I save the world some resources.

Most glass jars will end up being recycled but I do not recycle these jars but use them for years to can and store all manner of things.   Re-use is a much better option than recycling because in reality glass is not worth recycling.   The cost to transport and remanufacture the glass makes it a recycled product with a negative value, it in facts uses more energy and resources than to make glass from raw materials.   Glass is well suited for re-use because it can be cleaned so well at home and is moderately durable.

There are no end of products that I buy which if they used lid openings that fit canning jar lids I could re-use.   I am thinking about mustards, relishes, olives and so much more.   The problem is that companies all choose to have products in their own sized jars that can not be re-used.

As an example, we buy various Bick's Relishes in the 375 ml size.   I have re-used as many of these jars as I can to store bits and pieces of hardware and other things, but I have run out of uses for them.  I have to recycle them all now.  If a company were to offer relish in a jar that would fit either the standard or widemouth lids, I would shift my purchases to them.

It is not only for canning that glass jars are good for, but also general storage.  If the jars were a standard 70 mm or 86 mm wide mouth opening I could re-use them for storage such as we do in our pantry which is filled with glass jars from 125 ml to 2 litres in size holding all of our dry goods.  Bernardin sells plastic screw on lids for both the standard and wide mouth sizes, which is much better a fit and cleaner than re-using an old relish jar lid.

I know this is not a big thing but still it is the sort of lack of forethought in our society that means we end up being less thrifty than we should be.    I wish some of the companies out there would pick up on this and point out they have an environmentally sensitive virtue as part of their product.