UC Master Food Preserver logo- blue jar with orange lid, brown book with red strawberry all within a blue circle.
UC Master Food Preservers of San Bernardino and Riverside Counties

2026 Training Info

Note: The training period for UC Master Food Preservers of San Bernardino and Riverside Counties runs from January through June. Applications typically open in the fall prior to this training period. Please submit your information using the training interest form below to receive updates about the next UC Master Food Preserver training.

Become a UC Master Food Preserver!

Are you interested in learning food preservation skills and becoming a UC Master Food Preserver? The purpose of the certification course is to train volunteers in the knowledge and skills of research-based practices so they can teach safe home food preservation to the residents of San Bernardino and Riverside Counties. Prior food preservation knowledge is not a requirement; willingness to teach others is.

Program Benefits

  • Contribute to your community. Every year, UC Master Food Preserver volunteers contribute several thousand hours of educational service, helping keep our community safe and healthy.
  • Enjoy working together with a great group of food enthusiasts.
  • Gain excellent knowledge about preserving fresh produce.

Training Course

Interested individuals will apply, interview, and pay program fees before starting the training course to become a certified volunteer of the University of California. The course offers students more than 50 hours of vital training over the course of 12 weeks. Training is comprised of online classes as well as hands-on labs derived from government and extension research. 

Training topics include:

  • Knife skills & food safety
  • Cold storage
  • High-acid preservation (boiling water & atmospheric steam canning)
  • Pickling
  • Fermenting
  • Low-acid preservation (pressure canning)
  • Dehydrating
  • Teaching and program implementation

After completing the training, new UC Master Food Preservers of San Bernardino and Riverside Counties are required to volunteer a minimum of 50 hours in the first year and 25 hours plus 12 hours of continuing education in each subsequent year.

Join the Interest List

If you are excited to learn preservation skills and teach your community, enter your contact information in our Master Food Preserver training interest form, and we will contact you when we release the dates for the upcoming training and open the application.