If you’ve been involved in canning for any length of time, you’ve no doubt heard of ForJars canning lids. ForJars canning lids are some of the most popular canning lids on the market. People rave about them. And yet I refuse to use ForJars canning lids. In this blog post, I share with you why, and what I choose to use instead.
What Led Me to Research ForJars Canning Lids
This post reflects my personal experience and research. I am not affiliated with or compensated by ForJars, and I am sharing this for transparency and education.
First, let me say that when I first heard about ForJars canning lids, I wanted to try them. They seemed like a really great product, and everyone I came across raved about them. And on top of that, people swore up and down that the lids were made in the USA. (More on that in a minute.)
But the thing that made me research them was a simple comment on one of my YouTube videos.
This article includes affiliate links.
If you follow me at all, you know that I use and recommend the Nesco canner (Amazon). One commenter let me know that she wasn’t sure the canner was safe, because she found that when canning with it, after jars have sealed, she can easily pry off the lids using her fingers.
I had never heard of anyone else having that problem related to the Nesco, so I was stumped. But at the time this comment was made, there were a lot of knock off lids made in China being sold on sites such as Amazon. (This is still the case, but at the time, many lids that were branded as Ball and other well-known brands were counterfeits.) I thought perhaps she had bought some of these bad lids. She said she hoped it wasn’t the lids, because she was using ForJars canning lids, that she had bought directly from the company.
Since I had heard nothing but good things about ForJars lids, I was stumped, but decided to look into it more deeply.
Not Everyone Has a Positive Experience with ForJars Lids
As I began to research, I found people who once sang the praises of ForJars lids, but found that over time, they end up rusting, and because of that they no longer recommended them.
I found others who had problems with them buckling or not sealing well. Some people claimed that when they reached out to the company about their problems, that they didn’t get good customer service.
Products from any company can fail. Or the wrong order can be accidentally sent out. Those things happen. So, I give grace to a company when things happen. However, I judge a company by how well they take care of a problem when it occurs. If ForJars truly does have bad customer service, then even if the lids are wonderful, I can’t support the company.
Why So Many Creators Promote ForJars Canning Lids
The next issue is that people are well-compensated for promoting ForJars lids. I hesitated to mention this one, because as a content creator myself, I am compensated for promoting various products. It’s hard to make a living as a blogger or YouTuber without receiving at least some affiliate income. So, I’m not opposed to that as a general rule.
However, compensation in and of itself should never be the determining factor when it comes to what products to promote. I receive emails on a regular basis by brands wanting me to promote their products, and I always turn them down. Instead, I have products I love, and if I love and use them already, I see if they have an affiliate program or see if they are available on Amazon. So, love for the product is first, and compensation is a nice perk.
One telltale sign is that video thumbnails often have the ForJars logo in them. Here are a few examples.
So you can see that the one thing that all of these images have in common is the ForJars logo.
If you are reviewing a product, it makes sense to put the logo for the product in the thumbnail, because that is indeed what the video is about. But as you can see in the last photo I uploaded, the video itself is about canning about gumbo. It’s not about ForJars. But it has the logo in the thumbnail. Why? Because there is likely compensation from ForJars for doing so, and putting the logo in the thumbnail is likely required for compensation.
Marketing Concerns with ForJars Canning Lids
The biggest reason I choose not to use ForJars canning lids is because the company as a whole uses deceptive marketing practices.
I have found that people swear up and down that ForJars canning lids are made in the USA. I do not fault people for saying this, because they have be led to believe that is the case. Who leads them to believe that? The company does.
Here’s an example of misleading information in the ForJars packaging and website.
Above is an example of the ForJars packaging, on the right. All of their boxes prominently display an American flag. Why? Because there are people in the USA who want to buy products made in America. When you see an American flag on packaging, you immediately think, “Made in America.”
Now if you look more closely at the American flag image, it says, “American Brand.”
This is significant, because while it gives the impression that the canning lids are made in the USA, they are protecting themselves legally, because while there is an American flag, it doesn’t say, “Made in America” or “Made in the USA.”
More Marketing Issues with ForJars Canning Lids
The American flag on the packaging is especially bad, because no matter where you see the products (e.g. on Amazon), at least on a subconscious level, people think the canning lids are American made.
But there are other ways the company does their best to give the impression that their canning lids are American made. Here’s another example.
On the ForJars website, they have a long list of ways that their canning lids are supposedly superior to other brands. At the top of the list are that, ForJars is an “American brand.” The implication is that their lids are made in the USA, and other canning lids are NOT made in the USA. This deception is a double whammy because their lids are not made in the USA. Additionally, while there are indeed many canning lids made in China, there are also good, solid, legitimate American companies that actually do make their lids in the USA. I will share my favorite in a bit.
Misleading Claims About U.S. Manufacturing
If you email the ForJars company directly, and ask where their canning lids are made, they admit they are made in China. They say something about how they use the strictest standards. They also claim that they are working on moving manufacturing to the USA.
The biggest problem with this is that they have been saying this for years. I’ve been checking into this for a few years now, and they still give the same response. I have heard from others that the company told them this more than six years ago.
Now whether or not they are truly trying to move the manufacturing of their canning lids to the USA is anybody’s guess. I cannot claim to know this because I don’t. But the lack of transparency in their marketing undermines any trust I have in what the company says.
Trusted Canning Lids Made in the USA
The good news is, there are indeed WONDERFUL canning lids that are 100% made in the USA.
| Brand | Made in USA | Single-Use or Reusable | Transparency |
|---|---|---|---|
| ForJars | ❌ | Single-use | Low |
| Ball | ✔ | Single-use | High |
| Superb | ✔ | Single-use | Very High |
| Tattler / Harvest Guard | ✔ | Reusable | High |
My favorite brand is Superb (Amazon).
The image above is from Superb canning lids packaging. As you can see, it also has an American flag, but the wording is different. The packaging on Superb canning lids clearly states, “Made in the USA” instead of “American Brand” as is stated on the ForJars packaging.
You can get Superb lids in both regular mouth, and wide mouth on Amazon. Note that I linked to “Bakers dozen” for each of those, as it’s generally less expensive per lid, if you buy in bulk. But smaller amounts are available. If you want to check them out, you can visit the Superb store page on Amazon.
If you want to learn more about the Superb company, and how they got started making canning lids, check out the video below.
Other Canning Lids Made in the USA
Ball canning lids (Amazon) are also made in the USA. During the pandemic, Ball canning lids got a bad reputation of not sealing, of buckling, etc. I believe that is because during that time, canning supplies were hard to come by, and there were a lot of knock off canning lids that were branded as Ball lids, but were not. Thankfully, due to being well stocked, I didn’t need to buy lids during the pandemic, and therefore always used authentic Ball lids. I do have an occasional lid that doesn’t seal, but that’s rare.
Tattler and Harvest Guard lids, both available on Amazon, are resusable canning lids that are also made in the USA. At first glance, they are more expensive than Ball, Superb or ForJars canning lids. However, since they are reusable, they are actually quite a bit cheaper. Having said that, there is a learning curve with them, and especially when people first start using them, many do not seal. However, those who use them regularly swear by them. I have them in my stash so that I’ll be well stocked if we ever have another canning lid shortage, but in the meantime, I prefer to use either Ball or Superb canning lids.
Are ForJars Canning Lids Made in the USA?
One of the most common questions I see — and one that understandably causes confusion — is whether ForJars canning lids are actually made in the United States.
No. ForJars canning lids are manufactured in China. While the company markets itself as an American brand and prominently features an American flag on its packaging, the lids themselves are not currently made in the United States.
This distinction matters to many home canners who intentionally seek out products that are truly made in the USA and want clear, transparent information when making purchasing decisions.
Conclusion: Why This Matters to Me
At the end of the day, my refusal to use ForJars canning lids has very little to do with whether or not they can work. It has everything to do with trust.
Canning is about safety, reliability, and confidence in the products we use to preserve food for ourselves and our families. When a company relies on marketing that strongly implies something that simply isn’t true — especially something as important as where a product is made — that trust is undermined.
I don’t expect perfection from companies. I do expect honesty and transparency. And when those are missing, I choose to spend my money elsewhere.
Thankfully, there are excellent canning lids that are truly made in the USA, from companies that clearly and openly state where their products are manufactured. Those are the brands I feel comfortable using, recommending, and standing behind.
You may ultimately decide that ForJars lids are right for you — and that’s your choice. But for me, knowing what I know now, I choose Ball and Superb instead.
Recommended Articles
If you enjoyed this article, you’re sure to enjoy these related articles.
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- How to Use Reusable Canning Lids | Harvest Guard and Tattler
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