Keven Moore: Food trucks food can be tasty — but how safe are the trucks and the food?

Food trucks have become a cherished part of the American culinary landscape, providing a diverse array of cuisines to people on the go. Their history is rich and varied, tracing back to the 19th Century and evolving significantly over the decades.

Their history can be traced all the way back to horse-drawn chuckwagons, in the late 1800's designed to feed cowboys and loggers a hearty meal as they were trying to tame the American wilderness.

At the turn of the century pushcarts became a common sight in American cities, as entrepreneur started catering to city workers and immigrants.

Then with the advent of automobiles ice cream trucks started to cruise neighborhoods and with the success proved that mobile food vending and in the 1960's and 1970's the Roach Coach era began, where these mobile canteens began servicing construction sites and industrial parks providing blue collar workers a hot and tasty meal.

Keven Moore works in risk management services. He has a bachelor's degree from the University of Kentucky, a master's from Eastern Kentucky University and 25-plus years of experience in the safety and insurance profession. He is also an expert witness. He lives in Lexington with his family and works out of both Lexington and Northern Kentucky. Keven can be reached at [email protected]

The early 2000s saw the rise of the modern food truck movement, fueled by a fresh wave of innovative entrepreneurs and chefs. These trucks offered gourmet cuisine, often with a focus on unique and high-quality ingredients. The advent of social media platforms such as Twitter and Instagram enabled food trucks to engage with customers and cultivate a dedicated following.

According to Zippa.com, as of 2023 there are approximately 36,324 food truck businesses operating in the U.S., employing roughly 40,000 people. It is a $1.48B industry, growing 9.9% annually since 2018.

The surge in popularity of food trucks has also added a new challenge for insurers, health inspectors and safety professionals with their unique set of risk exposures — is the food they serve sanitary and safe to eat?

The food truck industry in Kentucky is a largely new enterprise with an evolving set of laws and regulations that can often be a tangled mess for food truck owners.

Food trucks are inherently mobile, but food truck regulation is decidedly local, with differing sets of requirements across jurisdictional boundaries where each county and city can impose further requirements or restrict food trucks altogether.

The regulation of food trucks is left largely to local health departments. Food trucks can register and pay a small fee for a statewide permit in a particular county. The purpose of the statewide permit is to ensure that the food truck itself is compliant with state regulations concerning plumbing and other public health considerations.

In addition to food safety concerns, food trucks pose their very own special risks. When you're getting a meal, it's easy to forget sometimes that food trucks are actually heavy trucks, designed to be mobile. They can range in size from 16,000 pounds to 30,000 pounds, when compared to the average passenger vehicle of 2 tons (4,000 pounds), and these are some heavy-duty size vehicles.

Only the largest models of food truck typically require a commercial driver's license. Otherwise, anyone can drive one, with no special training required.

Operating these vehicles is very different from a passenger vehicle and usually have multiple blind spots around the truck. They also brake much more slowly due to their weight and size, and handling corners is very different, too.

Food trucks oftentimes may carry large quantities of oil used for deep frying, which is highly flammable. If hot oil is released during impact, it can cause severe burn injuries and possibly start a fire.

One large risk exposure is that these vehicles often carry their own power supplies with them, which is a huge risk exposure. Most will carry their own generators with extra fuel tanks and large propane tanks to cook with. These tanks are often large and mounted on the outside of the vehicle, posing a special risk of fire and explosion if the truck is in an accident and develops a gas leak. Because of the explosive power of these gas cylinders, the New York Fire Department even considers food trucks to be a potential terrorist threat.

While the use of liquid propane is quite common, when not handled and stored correctly the result can be a catastrophic explosion that causes horrific injuries and death to truck operators, employees, customers and bystanders.

This is happening with some degree of regularity and sometimes fatal. For instance just last July 2023 two people were badly burned after food truck gas grill burst into flames at the Kentucky Horse Park.

In addition to food handling safety, food truck operators should follow the following guidelines to help reduce their liability and keep the public safe:

Only employ drivers 21 years of age or older and those that clear an acceptable motor vehicle records check.

For larger commercial size food trucks, only employ drivers that carry the proper CDL.

Install audible backup alarms on all vehicles and use a spotter whenever you are backing your vehicle.

Safely park trucks away from main roads and on streets posted 25 MPH to protect pedestrians.

Install multiple wide angle convex mirrors on the front and back of vehicles and/or install backup cameras to reduce potential for vehicular and pedestrian accidents.

Use four-way amber flashing lights, reflective strips, watch for children signage, rear bumper covers to prevent kids from climbing on the back of vehicles.

Conduct a safety inspection on your vehicle daily prior to each use and maintain documentation for a minimum of one year.

Only operate vehicles with serving windows to the right side of the truck (curb-side) when parked on streets.

Ensure there is no public seating within the mobile food truck and don't provide seating for your guests near the vehicles exhaust.

Check that there is a clearance of at least 10 feet away from buildings, structures, vehicles, and any combustible materials.

Verify fire department vehicular access is provided for fire lanes and access roads and don't block fire hydrants.

Check that appliances using combustible media are protected by an approved fire extinguishing system.

Verify portable fire extinguishers have been selected and installed in kitchen cooking areas in accordance with NFPA 10, and train employees to use the fire extinguishers.

Where solid fuel cooking appliance produce grease-laden vapors, make sure the appliances are protected by listed fire-extinguishing equipment.

Ensure that employees are trained in the proper method of shutting off fuel sources, the proper procedure for notifying the local fire department, and proper procedure for how to perform simple leak test on gas connections.

Keep generators separated from the public by barriers, such as physical guards, fencing, or enclosures and shut down generators prior to refueling from a portable container.

Make sure that exhaust from generators maintain at least 10 foot clearance in all directions from openings and air intakes, are at least 10 feet from every means of egress, and directed away from all buildings and from all other cooking vehicles and operations.

Inspect gas systems prior to each use and keep the main shutoff valve on all gas containers is readily accessible.

Keep portable gas containers in the upright position and secured to prevent tipping over.

Perform and document leak testing on all gas connections affected by replacement of an exchangeable container.

Ensure that with gas-system piping, a flexible connector is installed between the regulator outlet and the fixed-piping system.

Where a gas-detection system is installed, ensure that it has been tested in accordance with the manufacturer's instructions.

Close gas supply piping valves and gas container valves when equipment is not in use.

Keep cooking equipment, including the cooking ventilation system, clean by regularly removing grease.

Don't store fuel above any heat-producing appliance or closer than 3 feet to any cooking appliance.

Don't store fuel near any combustible flammable liquids, ignition sources, chemicals, and food supplies and packaged goods.

Be Safe, My Friends

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