In the US people are super paranoid about food as compared to most of the EU (and probably other places as well). Americans keep eggs, fruit, cured meats and jam in the fridge as well.
Unlike in Europe, American chickens eggs are washed and need to be refrigerated in order to not go bad (it's more common for American chickens to have salmonella, which is also why you shouldn't eat raw eggs in America).
Some fruits (such as apples or pineapples) simply taste better cold, and some fruits do last longer if refrigerated. That's important if you go grocery shopping every two weeks, which is quite normal in America.
Canned jam is never refrigerated, but once opened it always is, and I'm sure that's the case everywhere.
Cured meats, like jerky? No one refrigerates that.
Not washing the eggs has the additional advantage that they don't need to be refrigerated.
Not in Ireland. Jam lasts a very long time unrefrigetated. All that sugar is a preservative. Works the same way as salting a ham. Anything that tries to grow on it gets dried out and dies.
Regarding jam, I think it probably depends on the kind of jam. I usually get the stuff with whole strawberries that I spread with a spoon. I'm sure the typical American jelly will last a long time unrefrigerated, but that seems to be less common in my part of Canada.
It depends on the fruit but many of them will last longer in the fridge. Same goes for cured meat and jams. Especially with jam you may not eat it often enough to stop it from molding at room temps.
I get making fun of stupid American habits is an EU pastime, but this is some pretty dumb stereotyping. There's rational reasons behind what most people are doing, even if it's a little different from the habits where you live.
It's hardly stereotyping. By your own admission, its representative of the norm. But your explanation is well-taken.
Nevertheless, it speaks to the greater point: people (especially in the US) have become disconnected from their foods. Much of this appears to be structural, as you have pointed out.
That's interesting. In France it is actually illegal to sell washed eggs. As a result they can be kept easily a month without refrigeration. I wonder why there is such a different practice.
In Europe our regulations mean that the chickens are kept in much cleaner conditions; our eggs don't need to be cleaned so keep their protective layer and can be kept outside of the fridge.
If you were thinking like a chicken, you’d see that it’s inevitable: at some point in time, the egg is under the butt. One of the most important rules of being a chicken is to make sure that any clean thing under the butt is immediately pooped on.
The only known exception to this rule is other chickens. I’ve never seen a chicken poop on another chicken.