> Maybe it's just me, but I seem to remember (maybe false memory?) that 10,20 years ago the produce section was basically large piles of loose fruits and veg, and you would pick what you wanted. There would also be a few bags of potatoes, oranges, and apples, sometimes in a mesh bag, sometimes plastic.

I live in California, and its still largely that way. The shelf space devoted to prewrapped things is pretty similar to 20 years ago in most stores (more than 40 years ago, though.)