Hello! It's my first post ever, and I need some advice! (Imagine that...)

I've been dabbling in the raw vegan diet for over a year now, and I definitely feel better when I stick with it. Lately, one of my biggest hurdles to living the raw dream has been a serious lack of funds. In fact, I've been so broke lately that I've been eating pretty much whatever I can afford, and I've begun to develop a case of the crummies. I won't go into details of my current diet for fear of offending the purists among us, but suffice it to say, it ain't the fruity fresh splendor we all strive for.

So, I'm searching for the cheapest of the cheap. I need the most bang for my buck, foods that will fill me up without weighing me down. Did I mention, I'm looking for CHEAP food? Am I doomed to piles of bananas and bulk lentils for sprouting? Is there something juicy and delicious and 99 cents a pound that evades me? I need calorie density!

I'm poor. I'm hungry. Help!

Some suggestions that have worked for me: Hit many stores on your way home and look for just the sales. Get to know your local SMALL produce stand or grocer....and let them know you are looking to buy their 'scratch & dent' stuff....or whatever they don't sell....on the cheap....and that you will be a regular customer. Grow some of your own greens and herbs. Forage in the community: knock and doors of homes that have large fruit trees...and ask if you can have a few for you and your family. Apply for food stamps if you qualify. Get a part time job at fruit stand loading/unloading in the mornings or evenings....and you'll have a ready supply of extra cash and discount produce. Get a girl to buy stuff for you. Fill up on staple vegetables (if you eat those) that are cheap like julienned cabbage salads instead of expensive Bibb lettuce...........and staple fruits like apples, oranges, etc. Eat only what is is season - it's cheaper.

-Hit calorie dense stuff like coconut (I get them for .99)...and cheap fruit (pound per pound) like melons (which come out to about .50 / lb).

-Just some suggestions that I have used.

-David Z. Mason

WWW.RawFoodFarm.com

Thanks for the suggestions, David! I really want to learn more about foraging & wild foods-- it doesn't get much cheaper than free! Unless I can find a way to get paid to eat raw...

You think girls get cheaper produce? Interesting theory, I'll have to run some tests on that! (I'm a girl, btw.)

Thanks again, and nice website, too!

Ruby

Oh hey! Thanks Ruby. I'm pretty sure it's a scientific fact that girls choose better produce....well.....not better than me...heh..heh. But I was thinking more along the line of just having one or more girls buy me a pineapple dinner.

-David Z. Mason

WWW.RawFoodFarm.com

Ah, I totally missed your meaning there. Silly me. Definitely a good idea to get your romantical interests to buy your food for you. Sadly, my boyfriend and I are in the poorhouse together, so gold digging is not an option for me. Certainly a proven method, though-- singles take note!

David has excellent advice.

Welcome and good luck! Where do you live? Maybe someone can help get you started on foraging in your area?

Love,
Prism

Dandelion greens are an edible wild that you can find most places and easily identify. Here are some pix:

[lifeonanoxfordlawn.blogspot.com]

[www.deerfernfarms.com]

[www.herbsforhealth.com]

And some seeds for buying:

[cgi.ebay.com]

-David Z. Mason

WWW.RawFoodFarm.com

Thanks for all the tips!

Prism: I live in Asheville, NC.

hi poorstudent

there are some farmers (esp. organic farmers) who sometimes need / want help
and in exchange for your help, they will allow you to have some of their crops

u might look around to see which farmers produce catch your interest them most

also if u have any neighbors that have fruit trees etc. maybe you could volunteer to water their yards or rake their leaves etc. in exchange for some of their fruit

or ... umm... sometimes you could just ask

because a lot of the times they just drop to the ground

and it just rots

and well... maybe you could make better use of them ( by eating them)

rather than making it go to compost

anyhow

umm... yeah, you can get pretty hungry
when you don't have much funds

and it can be exhausting too

but... there are ways

dmz has good ideas ( as usual)

good luck

enjoy your studies
it'll be done before u know it

then u can breathe a goodly deserved sigh of relief (LOL)

PoorStudent:

-I'll mail you some seeds for free - if you promise to scrounge free pots....dig up some free soil....and grow your own greens! LOL. I'm serious! Just e-mail me where to send them at Davidzanemason@hotmail.com

-David Z. Mason

WWW.RawFoodFarm.com

If you have any farmers markets in your area, you might try going near the end of the time that they are open--many vendors mark down their produce or will make you a deal on whatever they haven't sold (scratch and dent, etc.) As someone else said--make friends with them, get to know them and tell them your situation and visit the same ones weekly. Good luck!

Thanks for all the feedback, one and all! Everyone has great ideas. David, you're awesome-- I sent you an email. I also thought of doing a seed trade, if anyone is interested. (See [www.rawfoodsupport.com])

Rawfrancois, if you are reading: Thanks for your PM-- lots of great tips on your website, for sure. I especially appreciated the blessing to go non-organic and to eat cooked food as necessary. Though not ideal, it's not worth feeling guilty over.

Just had a nice meal of sesame kale (sauteed, oh well) and tangelos (on sale!), and I'm feeling much better!

I found some great ideas on eating cheap through this site www.fredericpatenaude.com. He offers a lot of free articles on various ways to live raw reasonably.

I tend to eat simply...fruits veggies and nothing too difficult...pluslots of water.

Maybe you could get a parttime job at a grocery store in the produce section and then I'm sure you could have all the produce etc. they pull off the shelves. I thought about doing that myself. Isn't Greenlife Grocery in Asheville? That's a wonderful organic grocery store (kind of high priced) but if you could work for them you'd have it made.