Truth-in-advertising is always a little questionable, but what surprises me about so many of these ads is that they show all the food neatly packed without any wrapping or containerizing. You’ve got whole turkeys next to chocolate cakes, fruit next to vegetables, and even whole Jello molds just sitting there soaking up all the flavors and aromas of the surrounding items. Yech.
Prosperity has always been measured in part by what we eat, so the prosperous home was one with way too much food. Even the largest family couldn’t possibly eat all the items in some of these ads before it spoiled or just got too gross to eat.
Modern refrigeration was one of the great industrial developments, as keeping food cold is critical to health. Not only do refrigerators cut down on spoilage, but they allow for the storage and transportation of items that once were much more seasonal and regional. Try getting fresh vegetables during the winter on the East Coast in 1865.
Early home refrigerators used ammonia and other deadly gasses in their compressor mechanisms, resulting in accidents that caused burns and deaths. So despite the benefits, people didn’t start adopting mechanical refrigerators in great numbers until the late 1920s when Freon became the common refrigerant. Until then it was typical for the iceman to visit homes with big blocks of ice, which were used in wooden boxes to keep food cold.
Today we take our refrigerators for granted, and now that most food items are dated for freshness, it’s much easier to keep them from getting too gross. But I’m sure almost everyone has a container deep in the back of their fridge with something unidentifiable in it, long past its edible stage. Cold temperatures can only go so far in preserving those leftovers.
I rarely have the problem of spoiled leftovers, since I can easily see every item in my fridge. But God help me if we ever have an earthquake or other emergency that might require surviving a few days without being able to visit the store. How long can you live off of two jars of mustard, some pickles, and half a bottle of balsamic vinaigrette salad dressing?
This article was last modified on May 17, 2023
This article was first published on January 29, 2010
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