I make some stuff really well, in the case of today, that stuff is Sauerkraut.
My friends like sauerkraut but don't make it very well. Fortunately they do other things well (like grow Arugula (my friends are hippies)).
So I said to my friend,
"Hey Friend, give me some of that Arugula you have in abundance and I'll make you some Sauerkraut"
to which my friend said
"Really? I can give you some of this overly abundant Arugula for some scarce Sauerkraut? Sure!"
This is bartering. It works very well. Both I and Friend are happier because of this transaction.
When we have something in abundance or something that is easy to produce then we exchange it for something that we lack or is hard for us to produce. There is one caveat, neither of those things (the abundant thing or the scarce thing) can be money.
I think that this "bartering" idea could become very popular among today's food hippies. I think this for the following reasons:
- Trend - It sounds both traditional and alternative (funny how those go together). If you're the kind of person who thinks farmers markets are cool then I think you will also like this bartering idea
- Diversity - We like to eat a diverse set of high quality foods but making a diverse set of high quality foods is hard
- Specialization - We can produce a few types of high-quality food very easily
- Scale - It is easier to make a few large quantities of something than many small quantities of that thing.
- Mutuality - Our friends are in the same situation
- Community - We like the act of trading with our friends and neighbors. It is a social and fun activity well fit for a Saturday afternoon
Money- We specifically don't like the act of trading money with our friends; this becomes awkward. Bartering very specifically does not allow money.
Let me know if you want a half gallon of sauerkraut or some dried bananas. I also have a friend who has some arugula and cucumbers. If we get a few more people together I'll bet this idea could really take off, we'll have to find some place to make all of these exchanges, some sort of "marketplace."
This post was partially encouraged by this reddit post explaining money.
Short and technical version. There are a set of mutually beneficial transactions that do not occur due to legal and social barriers. Reintroducing the concept of bartering may enable some of these transactions through a current social trend (farmers markets). Many social and legal barriers vanish when money is removed from the transaction.
