Yes, it can be done. Careful planning is required and you have to be smart about it. One of my friend did it for some time (it was one Euro a day) and she did it in a country where the cost of living is much higher than average. I too have had some experience in living for less than Euro a day.
What I am trying to say is that with a little planning and some smart thinking you can actually survive for less than a dollar a day. I have done some lengthy research on it and even successfully tried it for several weeks.
We need some basics to start our less than dollar a day journey. Let me start by listing the nutritional requirements for a healthy body:
- Carbohydrates
- Fats
- Proteins
- Vitamins and Minerals
Please keep in mind that this looks simple but requires a detailed list of sub categories - like more than a dozen vitamins, almost 20 different inorganic ions (minerals), essential fatty acids and even a greater number of essential amino acids. Thankfully most of these things can be found in the simplest of foods. In my experience I can divide the essential food in these categories:
- Fruits and Vegetables
- Meat (Fish, Chicken, Beaf and mutton)
- Grains
- Animal products like eggs and dairy
- Salt and Sugar (for immediate needs)
(Do remember that I am writing this answer from the perspective of keeping yourself alive on dollar a day)
Now that we know the kind of food that we might need in our diet, we can plan the cheapest possible meal around it. Things that you absolutely need to plan a realistic meal:
- A market with a decent variety in prices and type of food products.
- Place to store your food. A refrigerator and also a dry place.
Things that can also really help but are not essential.
- If you have a lake or a river nearby to catch fish, then you can not only survive with less then a dollar, but you might can get to eat fulfilling and awesome meals several time a month.
- A farm. There are several farms that sell their last stocks of food and meat for dirt cheap prices.
Creative tricks:
- Government subsidized multivitamins (not available everywhere)
- Try to make good connections with an owner/staff of a restaurant - you know what I am talking about ;-)
- Spices and garnishing can make the blandest of food come alive