Video: What is a Freegan?
Whether you’ve seen it on ABC’s “The Goode Family” or read about it on Newsweek’s “Freegan Girl” blog, you’re probably familiar with the term freeganism. At first glance, it may seem like dumpster diving under an eco-pretense, but those who practice it say it’s quite different.
“Meet the Freegans” is a new documentary that spells out the basics of freeganism and dispels the notion that it’s only for those that don’t have jobs or don’t mind eating out of a trashcan. The video follows Steve, a school teacher that wants to take his eco-friendly practices to the next level by minimizing his waste and the amount of stuff he purchases.
“A lot of people might refer to this as dumpster diving, but I don’t look at it that way. I consider it a fun way to reduce waste and save money for myself,” Steve says. “A lot of people might think I’m homeless or drunk, living in a dump [or] can’t really hold a job but that’s anything from the truth. I have a nice home, a quality education and I’m a school teacher. I don’t live under a bridge.”
Along with a group of friends, Steve peruses a local restaurant’s trash and comes home with fresh green beans, oranges and unopened bottles of juice that’s not even expired. The group has found so much discarded, edible food that they had to find a way to conserve it.
Adam, a freegan from Steve’s group, says it’s really not a hard choice – why throw away perfectly good food?
“You can call a rose by any other name, but it’s still a rose essentially, you know? It’s good food, so why not?” Adam says. “It’s kind of silly to be wasteful, and it’s free. That’s a no-brainer to me really.”
Save some cash and waste by going “hunting” for your food? What do you think?
Meet the Freegans from shieldsfilms.com on Vimeo.
