My friend, let me introduce you to the wonders of modern science. Fresh fruits and vegetables are now heavily exposed to pesticides and other substances that retard decay (even organic foods, though the exposure is lessened). Cheeses now include preservatives that did not exist 100 years ago. Dried meat has always had a lengthy lifespan, since the lack of moisture prevents decay (see the 1-year old McD's burger at SeriousEats), but today dried meat has the additional benefit of sealable, airtight packaging to prevent unnecessary exposure to moisture. (This also applies to fresh fruits and veggies). Many organic foods dispense with pesticides but irradiate the food with UV prior to transport.
London and other European cities were never as far from their food sources as American cities are. They also benefited from well-maintained road systems (i.e, paved roads) that lessened transit times.
Though as I said, "most" food spoiled on the way to market, not all. Food spoilage is still a problem today, but we have both minimized the spoilage, maximized production, and adopted certain techniques so that spoilage generally does not affect downstream food production or sales.
I am an avid gardener. I have a pretty good idea of how long the plumbs I pick off the tree or the peaches or the grapes, or the veggies from the garden will last without decaying on the counter without refridgeration.
Note wilting is no the same as decaying. Most fresh veggies will wilt. It takes a lot longer to decay though.
London and other European cities were never as far from their food sources as American cities are. They also benefited from well-maintained road systems (i.e, paved roads) that lessened transit times.
Though as I said, "most" food spoiled on the way to market, not all. Food spoilage is still a problem today, but we have both minimized the spoilage, maximized production, and adopted certain techniques so that spoilage generally does not affect downstream food production or sales.