Gotta love the classic "do a search, idiot" remarks. That's very helpful. Anyway...
Barter items. Hmm. First things that come to mind:
- Seeds, fertilizer, gardening equipment, live plants.
- Food, whether home-preserved or store-bought.
- Medications, personal hygiene items, medical supplies.
- Batteries, bullets, clothes, winter wear, shoes.
Another thing to consider are services. Know how to mend, darn, quilt, patch, knit, or sew? Your services could be handy even in modern times. Know how to build a house, install a wood stove, fish local streams, hunt edible mushrooms, weave a basket, trap/snare wild game? Maybe you're good with kids - every parent needs a sitter sometimes.
Not to be mean, but bartering in a post apocalyptic world is very unlikely to happen. Not impossible, just not likely. Why not take the bartering mindset and try using it NOW while things are relatively normal? You'll get a good idea of what people around you are into, because let's face it... you won't know what you need until you get out there and find out what people want.
For example, in my locale there are no honey stalls. People might have a hive or two for personal use, but I've yet to see honey for sale at a farmer's market or road-side stand. People around here WANT honey. They are willing to pay good money for it because right now WalMart is about the only place you can get it. Honey would be a very good barter item. Zucchini, beans, and corn are not good barter items because everyone and their brother grows them.
Get out there and start pounding the pavement/dirt/whatever to find a niche. Then fill it. Fill many. Then come back and let us know what you found, because I'm sure we'd all LOVE to see a thread about someone taking initiative rather than asking open-ended questions that have been answered a thousand times over already. Come on. I mean it. Off the duff.
Good luck.
