[AlexeiSadeski]

You can eat quite well on $3/day. $1.50/day of food is comfortably above subsistence in the US.

A diet of strictly rice and beans will net 1500 calories for $.30 - $.50 per day. That's not an appetizing diet, but provides a base number for calibration.

Cheap eating discussion:

http://forum.earlyretirementextreme.com/topic.php?id=599

[infinite8s]

It can be quite appetizing if you are able to purge a bit on dried whole spices, which I'll go a long way.