Freegans?

People who only eat free things? Do they exist in this forum?

Interesting concept.  Do you mean free things like ketchup packages at fast food outlets, meals supplied by well-meaning relatives and friends or things you can catch (like fish) or dig up and gather in the forest?

I'm not a freegan, but I know a group of them.

They go around to grocery stores and collect out of date breads and old produce that would be thrown out -- they do the same at certain restaurants that cooperate with them.

And they use whatever ingredients they get to cook a meal for homeless people which they give away for free and they of course, eat it themselves too.

They only do this for one meal a day - not sure how they get their other food.

I saw an interview with one and thought it was interesting. I'm not one, myself. The guy was saying the best dumpsters were Trader Joes and the local farmer's market. It was funny. He went to the dumpster with reusable shopping bags and started "shopping". Interesting concept. I don't think it's for me.

Then again, I am thinking about taking up Guerilla Gardening.

i saw a Freegan zine once that was really pretty hilarious

and of course they have a web site

:)

more power to ya on the gardening!

*has a 'black' thumb*

Great idea - never heard of them before but something North American society needs.  Any viable ecosystem depends on scavengers as part of the cycle.  The western world seems to think there is something wrong with this and marginalizes those who would serve that function. 

From the freegan website - Freeganism is a total boycott of an economic system where the profit motive has eclipsed ethical considerations and where massively complex systems of productions ensure that all the products we buy will have detrimental impacts most of which we may never even consider. Thus, instead of avoiding the purchase of products from one bad company only to support another, we avoid buying anything to the greatest degree we are able.

Ok, this is odd to me.  The only reason they are even able to do this is because someone else purchased products from these "bad" companies, thus allowing them to have the leftovers.  So really they are saying "well it's cool as long as WE aren't the ones who had to buy it".

Other than that, I agree with them.  Hey, if they are willing to go dumpster diving and keep things from being wasted, then I say go for it!!

I definitely agree with you, miss_vito!

ha, where i used to live, the convenience shop kept such rotted vegetables & fruits for the paying customers that i doubt even freegans would've picked them up from the bins.

I dont have the highest concerns about food being fresh - Im seriously into economy so if its just a qualitity issue and not getting sick risk, Ive gone with "past expiration" dates because I hate wasting already spent hard earned cash.

As well, food is something I will not invest in - its just too temporary.  On trips, I pack food to limit required buying of overpriced hotel meals. 

All deals are OFF, though, when a dumpster - one of the filthiest things I can imagine - comes into the equation.  Thats one fear factor episode they just cant anti up enough prize money to sway me on.  Especially with certain foods SO cheap, its close to being free anyway. 

I assume this lifestyle over time builds up some immunity to bacteria but knowing the hell that is food poisoning, cant imagine playing such Russian Roulette.   

Original Post by sun123:

I dont have the highest concerns about food being fresh - Im seriously into economy so if its just a qualitity issue and not getting sick risk, Ive gone with "past expiration" dates because I hate wasting already spent hard earned cash.

As well, food is something I will not invest in - its just too temporary. On trips, I pack food to limit required buying of overpriced hotel meals.

All deals are OFF, though, when a dumpster - one of the filthiest things I can imagine - comes into the equation. Thats one fear factor episode they just cant anti up enough prize money to sway me on. Especially with certain foods SO cheap, its close to being free anyway.

I assume this lifestyle over time builds up some immunity to bacteria but knowing the hell that is food poisoning, cant imagine playing such Russian Roulette.

you wouldn't like living in dublin then. food cost so much here, after mortgage its what i pay the most on. i dont really buy too many things or go out all the time as that's ridiculous here as well, i have to eat. i guess you could go for the cheap stuff which is usually junk food (that still costs too much here) but then your health suffers & that's worth something to me. but some of the stuff the freegans acquire can be ok though, its certain stores that are too careful with the best before date. just like trader joe's in american marks & spencer's are good for the freegans over here.

I've been known to dumpster dive for furniture, but I'd draw the line at discarded foods, even back in the day when I was eating off of Food Not Bombs and the charity soup trucks.

Also they say they don't want to support the economic structures, but they rely on someone else buying the stuff and throwing it out in the first place, or the existance of these "bad" companies to discard their bread or whatever. So they still rely on it in a way.

This wouldn't work too well in AZ during this time of year only because the food will spoil or cook so quickly after being tossed so unless you are right there when it gets thrown away you'll have a hard time.

I belong to freecycle haven't used them yet but I do get emails from the local group on Yahoo.

At first I think of "free food" on a weight loss site as being those foods you can eat unlimited amts of like cucumbers, carrots  celery and stuff with minimal calories LOL!!

I belong to freecycle.  I dumpster dive for furniture and such, picked up a bike a couple of weeks ago that only needed back brakes.

When I first got married and we were on very limited funds we use to make the rounds of relatives for dinner.

Not to sure about dumpster diving for food though.  I do bargain hunt for food deals to make the most of my money and do not waste anything.  Throwing food away is not an option.  Getting sick from food is also not an option right now.

I don't "freegan", but I help make it possible for those who do.  (Try spinning that kharma back on me!)

I appreciate freegans and their philosophy. I am not one of them, but I see how many of them have an ethically sound, consistent stance. 

Trust - My only problem with their "ethically sound, consistent stance" is that they still rely on these companies that they supposedly hate.  They rely on these companies (or other consumers) to throw out the extras that they, then, get to pick up for free.

I'd have a lot more respect for someone who claims that they just want to minimize waste, instead of just attacking random companies and crying foul.

I do not eat exclusively free food, but I have dumpstered many great edibles and have never become sick as a result. Tons of bread, produce, yogurt, pizza... you wouldn't believe some of the stuff that gets thrown away from places like Panera and Dominos and supermarkets. There is an Odwalla factory about 20 miles from where I used to live in Baltimore that threw away hundreds of juices, smoothies, and food bars. We would hit up their dumpsters in cool weather and the products were just fine.  We had weekly potlucks and/or left boxes of dumpstered surplus on our friends' steps.

The natural foods grocery where I work has a free bin for the employees where damaged, discontinued, or past date products are placed for our consumption. We even have a new t shirt design with the company name that says, "supporting healthy dumpster diving since 1989" haha. Somehow good stuff makes it to the dumpster even after it is offered to us.

I don't even really think of it in terms of "taking a stance" for or against anything, it's just a way to eat well without literally flushing my money down the toilet ;)

Original Post by lexabear:

I don't even really think of it in terms of "taking a stance" for or against anything, it's just a way to eat well without literally flushing my money down the toilet ;)

 Thank you, lexa.  THAT is something that I can agree with.

My sister worked at this coffee place once, and we would take the discarded bagels, buns, doughnuts, etc that were thrown out at the end of the day. Because it wasn't 'fresh' enough and they baked too much. However, I'm a bit apprehensive about grocery stores...at the coffee place, I knew it was safe to eat, but the grocery store might sprinkle the garbage with rat poison or something. I'm paranoid.

I think once it gets thrown out, it's fair game.

Freegans aren't really supporting the companies that they 'steal' from, but they are relying on them. It's an ecosystem. When I take free trash, I'm not trying to stick it to the man, it's just a way to a) reduce waste and b) make myself feel good about not spending money.

peaches, I think of it as scavenging - an ecologically sound perspective. I don't think they are relying on companies per se - if there were no dumpstered food etc, they would just find another way to survive.

Also, from what I understand, freegans are also into growing their own food (organically) in things like community gardens and abandoned plots of land, and bartering labour for food. The fact that they are part of an interconnected human culture doesn't bother me - they are by default adding value to our society, since they take nothing of "value" and (while most don't have paid jobs, from what I understand), volunteerism and activism are part of the freegan lifestyle. So even if they did absolutely nothing useful, they'd be breaking even - and as it stands most of them wind up, on net, contributing. How many of us can say that?

Certainly dumpster diving is a valid activity, but one that I thought was only part of the freegan philosophy, which is a wholesale rejection of the market system/capitalism (i.e. not working for pay, and not using money for anything). One can be a dumpster diver without being a freegan. Who among us has never eaten a dumpstered bagel or donut! (They're perfectly fine) :)  And, of course, like any philosophy (vegetarianism, anyone?), even some adherents don't practice it 100%. It's a difficult lifestyle to follow - living in a squat, living very communally, "feast or famine"-type waves of luck, getting judged and harassed by the authorities...

I like freegans, they don't burn my butt at all. (Unlike self-proclaimed "anarchists" on welfare, for example - buncha hypocrites.)