Mystery Shop
Become a mystery shopper, and enjoy free (or even profitable) meals out on the town.
Forage
Learn how to identify edible foods in the wild, and enhance your diet with free-for-the-taking fruits, vegetables, mushrooms and nuts. Many mycological societies and agriculture extensions offer guided wild food tours, so start there if you're new to foraging – safety first.
Coupon
Employ the right coupon strategies, and you could walk out of the grocery store with a cart (or at least a bag) full of free food.
Request Freebies
Free offers abound on the web. Sign up for every cereal sample, granola bar and snack that you can find, and enjoy a few meals on someone else's dime.
Barter
Money may rule the world, but it doesn’t have to rule yours. Barter your skills and services for the foods that you need. A quick car repair or a bit of mending work could turn into your next meal.
Accept Other's Surplus
Know someone with a bumper crop of zucchini or tomatoes? Then, let him know you'd be happy to share in his bounty. Gardeners are always looking for someone to pawn their surpluses onto.
Seek Out Free Meals
Festivals, church events, meetings, grand openings, receptions – it seems every occasion includes food these days. Keep a look out for any event that offers free food to the public, and take advantage of it. You can easily knock out one meal a week this way – even if it's just light hors d'oeuvres. Free is free.
Start a Perennial Food Garden
Annuals get all of the attention in the world of edible plants, but it's perennials that are the real bargain. Start a garden of perennial herbs, vegetables, fruits and legumes, and every harvest after the first will be free.
Freegan
Where do all of those grocery store cast offs go? Usually straight to the dumpster. But, despair not, because they may soon be rescued. There's a subculture known as freeganism that attempts to put that waste to good use. Read up on the freegan lifestyle, and form your own opinion about this growing free food trend:
