Posted on 09/20/2011 4:53:01 PM PDT by EBH
Have you ever thought about getting your food out of a trash can?
Dumpster diving has become a hot new trend in America. In fact, dumpster divers even have a trendy new name -- "freegans" -- and as the economy crumbles their numbers are multiplying.
Many freegans consider dumpster diving to be a great way to save money on groceries. Others do it because they want to live more simply. Freegans that are concerned about the environment view dumpster diving as a great way to "recycle" and other politically-minded freegans consider dumpster diving to be a form of political protest.
But whatever you want to call it, the reality is that thousands upon thousands of Americans will break out their boots, rubber gloves and flashlights and will be jumping into dumpsters looking for food once again tonight.
So is this actually legal?
In some areas, dumpster diving is considered to be legal. In other areas, dumpster divers are technically breaking trespassing laws. Although in most areas the police have so many other problems that they aren't really concerned about cracking down on dumpster divers.
One of the biggest issues facing dumpster divers is safety. Crawling around in back alleys and side streets in the middle of the night is not exactly the safest thing to do. But the lure of large amounts of free food is enough to keep some people coming back over and over again.
During the recent economic downturn, the popularity of dumpster diving has exploded. Today, there are dumpster diving meetup groups, dumpster diving Facebook groups, and even entire organizations such as Food Not Bombs that openly encourage their members to go dumpster diving.
If your family was going hungry, would you go dumpster diving?
You might be surprised at who is doing it. Dumpster diving is not just for the homeless and the unemployed anymore. A lot of people that have decent jobs have picked up on the trend.
Just check out the following example from a recent MSNBC article, "When Money Ran Short, This Dad Started Dumpster Diving."
A programmer by day, Todd takes to the streets of North Carolina by night, digging through Dumpsters at drug stores and grocery stores all around his rural neighborhood.
"You would be simply amazed at what businesses throw out," he said. "I've only had to buy two loaves of bread all year. ... Last week I had a trunk full of cereal, cookies, chips and ramen noodles."
Todd slinks in and out of smelly places with low-light flashlights to evade rent-a-cops who will shoo him away. Most nights, his 14-year-old son comes along.
The truth is that dumpster diving is just another sign of the times.
Food prices continue to rise and are putting incredible stress on the budgets of average American families. We just saw another huge rise in food prices during the month of August. Just check out the following data from a recent article posted on The Economic Policy Journal...
The index for finished consumer foods jumped 1.1% (13.2% annualized) in August, the third straight rise. Over 30% of the August advance can be traced to meat prices, which climbed 2.4% (28.8% annualized). Higher prices for processed poultry and eggs for fresh use also were major factors in the increase in the finished foods index.
If you are married and have a couple of children it can cost a lot of money to feed them every single month. It is not hard to understand the allure of dumpster diving for people that are having a hard time making ends meet.
[Dumpster diving isn't the only way to cut down on spending. Check out these 25 Ways to Save Hundreds on Your Monthly Expenses.]
Other Americans are choosing to dumpster dive because they believe that it helps them live a simpler lifestyle. There is a growing movement of people in America that are rejecting all of the "consumerism" that we see all around us.
Today, the average U.S. household has 13 different credit cards. We are constantly being bombarded with ads that tell us that we need more stuff in order to be happy.
Well, a lot of people have decided that is a lot of bunk and they are doing whatever they can to simplify.
Other dumpster divers are absolutely horrified by how much food is wasted in America: It has been estimated that 263,013,699 pounds of food are thrown out in the United States every single day.
Can you imagine?
We are probably the most wasteful nation on the planet. With the number of hungry people in the world, it is absolutely criminal how much food that we waste. In that sense, it is probably a good thing that dumpster divers are saving some of that food from the landfills and are finding positive uses for it.
In my recent special report about poverty in America, I noted that 46.2 million Americans are now living in poverty. For now, the U.S. government is helping feed over 45 million Americans through the food stamp program, but what is going to happen once the social safety net starts to break?
Right now, dumpster diving is cute and fun and an interesting way to save money, but in the future there may be millions of Americans digging around in trash cans if we don't get this economy turned around.
Note from the Editor: This article was originally posted at The Economic Collapse blog.
one year he concentrated on mountain bikes,
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police auctions are LOADED with bicycles , you can buy a lot of 20 or so bikes for $5 ,, nobody wants them... many times charities buy and fix them for gifts...
Hair dryers and clock radios behind the girls’ dorm.
I applaud your ingenuity and your industriousness. And I’m really glad you’re doing well now! Keep the faith!
I’ve read through most of the posts, and HOW FASCINATING! I don’t fault ANYONE for dumpster diving. If you’re making it on your own, without becoming dependent on the government, I say more power to ya! This is why I love Free Republic, seems I learn something new everyday. I’m not so proud I wouldn’t do the same if it meant feeding my boys. Heck, just going to garage sales is rewarding, think of all the people who don’t even bother, and just throw stuff in the garbage!
Just another great, wonderful day in Obama’s fundamentally transformed America.
What a lovely story (and home!). I’m proud of you!!
Thank You kimmie7
The people who throw this stuff out know there are people who dumpster dive and usually they do not mind it. But there are times when the food is thrown out for good reason. Usually they will get a lockable dumpster to dispose of this stuff but locks can be broken. So they pour gallons of bleach over everything. That is your warning sign. Bleach does not mean they are clean freaks. Bleach is BAD NEWS.
I have found the FR responses interesting too. What I see as fascinating, is that most of those who have done this have gone on to become successful and frugal folks.
It also demonstrates a key difference in attitudes of ‘down on their luck’ FReepers(conservatives) verses liberals.
The liberals in this story and many of the videos on dumpster diving see this as a new lifestyle, protest against capitalism, etc.
The conservatives posting this past evening see it as a stepping stone, a means to acheiving something better, survival without government assistance, and from their tone it seems that they never considered themselves out of their class. Hard-up, pushed to the brink....but never out of their class.
Which brings us to the idea of ‘class warfare.’ Is class a matter of things or a matter of attitude about things?
As the beltway elites and 0bama keep beating that drum about the classes and attempting to instigate class warfare, I will come back to this thread and consider that class is often determined by a person’s attitude first.
Have I ever dumpster dived for food? Yes. And it was a strong consideration last holiday season. Last year was the gift of food on the table, not from the dumpster, but from an Angel food purchase.
Living like no one else! ;-)
Thanks Diana for the ping.
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If you would like to be added to the “Live like no one else, so that you can LIVE like no one else” list, feel free to Freepmail me.
Many college students dive into dumpsters to get furniture for their rooms. I have done some to get lumber at construction sites to build stuff at home. I found enough pressure treated lumber at one site to rebuild a three step set of outside steps for the patio.
Very impressive! You have good reason to be proud of yourself!
I just love it. It’s not dumpster diving, it’s recycling. LOL
“Hair dryers and clock radios behind the girls’ dorm.”
Like new alarm clocks!
I found two solid oak cabinet doors when I was needing some 2X4 lumber. My neighbor basically built his workshop. Every time he needed and extra board or two, he would go to a construction site.
The contractor told him that the building codes stated if a board had nail or screw holes in them, the holes had to be cut off if they wanted to use the boards. We found a lot of 8’ 2X4 and 2X6 with a few holes in the ends.
When I was working at a grocery store, it always disturbed me to see 3 grocery carts full of bread and pastries being thrown out every single morning. We were banned from using it ourselves, and as I recall the dumpster was locked. It wasn’t spoiled at all but it was definately wasted.
Sad, ain’t it? When I worked on Monroe Street there was an artisan bakery a few doors down - I got all sorts of awesome stuff out of their dumpster at the end of the day. The Cinnamon Raisin loaves were to DIE for - day old or NOT!
St. Vinnie’s USED to put out day old stuff from the local bakeries, but some idiot in city government changed the rules on that, and they no longer do so...
I’m glad to hear of your resourcefullness, I’m always happier to hear of people who find a way rather than wait for government handouts :)
There’s a park nearby that has all kinds of fruits and nuts growing wild, and it always amazes me to see someone a block away from that park with a sign saying “Hungry - please help”. I can understand being desperate, but when free food is right there for the taking, why beg?
Hmmmm, husband is restoring my mother’s house. We found windows on the side of the road a few years back and my husband used them in several area’s of the house. Also, visit Buffalo Reuse every now and then and it’s incredible the architectual bargains that are available for restoration. Love junk as long as it’s stored somewhere else. Can’t stand clutter.
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