I always avoid the trader camps the only benefit is the weapons and sometimes you can recruit people but you need to bring lots of food to trade. So if you have lots of food it's worth it.

Yeah I can never afford anything there either. Can probably be worth near the end if you have food to spare and know that Canada is coming up very soon.

The RNG can be pretty rough about handing out food, but usually I'm able to afford skill training at least. I tend not to get a full party right away if I can help it, as that's a great way to burn through food crazy fast.

My first four jerks run ended due to running out of food insanely fast. Beat it later by just doing a solo character only run lmao.

Yeah the prices are pretty bad. You can barely afford anything you ever need even if you're scavenging around every single room you find for food.

not being able to afford stuff at trader camps has rarely been a problem for me and i am shocked to see so many people struggling with it, so i will bestow unto you all my personal Ultimate Food Strategy:
-only recruit people if you're sure they'll actually be useful. as long as you don't suck too bad and start with good custom characters, you can get through the early game with only two people no problem. i tend to only recruit custom characters, rare characters, and maaaybe a rando with high stats.
-grocery stores are AWESOME. the grocery store location is practically guaranteed to give you 20 food, at the very least. always go for them if you see them.
-stock up on weapons you can sell and always keep an eye out for events and locations that can give you good weapons. some good locations are the hardware store, dark/haunted mansion, the last arcade trader camp (you can get a heavy golden axe for free here and those things sell for 20(!!!) food), and police station.
-loot everything. only leave locations early if you're in serious danger. you will need everything you can get.

It may be which difficulty you're playing on, as on normal, I feel like I can afford stuff at trader camps somewhat frequently, but idk I'm new to this game. However, I recommend going to them EVERY TIME you get the chance, since if you don't have enough money to buy anything at a shop, there's a good chance they'll give you something for free. So yeah, even if you are low on supplies, ALWAYS go to the trader camps and check all the houses for supplies, and talk to all the npcs for a chance at free stuff!

Starting without a buddy can make it a little easier to stock up on food early on.

I have never had this problem except for sometimes the first trader camp I visit. There is always something to buy.

Some ways to mitigate this early game:
1. Traits that save on money: Gun collector (sell shotgun and rifle in a pinch), Tiny eater, Superfit, Soundsleeper (berry picking events) Phoenix/Pyro (burning house is a free event) Paranoid (saves a lot of trouble), Charming (get free stuff and deal with bandits)
2. Traits that find more food: Explorer (more chances to get groceries), City Seeker (rarer/harder events)
3. Always pick Yallmart to start, if not factory
4. Once you learn how to control the crowd of zombies on harder events, you will get more rewards, a team of four people with unbreakable weapons can make all the difference.

I always visit trader camp

Sometimes there's free loot, and I found out they're the safest easiest ways to farm COOL IT

Originally posted by Gingy:

I always visit trader camp

Sometimes there's free loot, and I found out they're the safest easiest ways to farm COOL IT

YES. always visit trader camps!!! the chance of finding free loot or racking up COOL ITS way outweighs the like minute youll save by skipping them

i've only played two rounds, the second round i made it to canada with 4 people
- hire people on last day
- buy good weapons and explosives at last trade too
- get skill training all around

but i've only played two rounds, so maybe i just got good RNG making it to canada.

You can spend your food at a shop and then get a free item for being too poor to afford anything from the same shop. Does not seem to work in reverse though.

Also not having food just drains morale if you have food and decent morale you have food to spend. I also avoid having a party of 4 which consumes 8 food a day until near the end.

Always be looting! Sounds like you are a little too careful exploring locations. Even when the scary music starts, you have some time to search.

But it also helps to know which locations have food, as opposed to ammo, weapons and medical supplies. Don't be afraid to take food option in events either (except berry picking maybe, I usually skip that unless it's very early in the game and I know I can survive with a tired team).

I've bought some of the most expensive things in the game, although of course that takes a little luck too.

No just go when you're broke they give you free stuff if you cant buy anything. Can be free ammo, guns, medical everything! They go all out for the poor.