Glass canning jars are absolutely ridiculous here in Belgium. I garden and I am going to scale up my gardening next year, so I need to get into canning and preserving again.
If you live in the US, you could get a 12 pack of standard mason jars in a store for https://www.target.com/p/ball-16oz-12pk-glass-regular-mouth-mason-jar-with-lid-and-band/-/A-12794405 under $15.
Here, any sort of glass jar is no cheaper than 20€ for 6 online and in stores it is often 5-10€ per jar, depending on size!! That is 300% more expensive on the cheap end here. It is not super sustainable to have to spend 200 euros on glass jars to can your extra fruit and vegetables.
Is there a secret to finding reasonably-priced glass canning jars that some people have found? I would reuse glass jars that I get from the store, but you are not supposed to reuse the lids because they degrade and will let in harmful bacteria and let things oxidize.
Kringwinkels are a goldmine for stuff like this. We oftentimes get crates at a time, chockful of Weck jars, canning jars, and the ones with the rubber seal and metal wire closing mechanism. We can’t get rid of them fast enough because (almost) no one will buy them, even at 50 cents.
If your local Kringwinkel doesn’t seem to have any, ask the staff, chances are they’re immediately recycling them rather than having them collect dust on the shelves.