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Before refrigeration became widely available, communities relied on a range of preservation techniques, each suited to different climates and available resources. Salting and smoking dominated in regions with access to abundant meat but limited ice, while fermentation became prevalent in areas where vegetables needed to survive long winters without spoiling. Drying, one of the oldest methods, worked best in arid climates where low humidity did most of the preservation work without additional intervention. What unites these otherwise distinct techniques is their shared mechanism: each one, in a different way, denies the microorganisms responsible for spoilage the moisture or conditions they need to multiply.