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SEATTLE —  The world’s largest banana provider is giving Seattle-Tacoma residents the chance to do something unique this summer with the beloved yellow fruit: Peel the love.

Seattle-Tacoma is one of eight cities selected for the first-ever Peel the Love Summer Food Truck Tour, a 4,800-mile, 102-day journey organized by DOLE® Bananas to bring delectable new summer recipes, serving suggestions and free samples to healthy-eating fans coast-to-coast. The pink-and-turquoise truck, created specifically for the tour, will make stops at supermarkets and other public and private venues throughout the Seattle-Tacoma area including after-school centers and other nonprofit organizations.

Scheduled public stops in the Seattle-Tacoma area include:

The truck will also visit the North Seattle Boys and Girls Club on May 28 to offer fun nutritional advice and host games and other activities as part of the organization’s healthy eating program. This visit is not open to the public.

Co-sponsored by Blue Diamond Almond Breeze Almondmilk and Dole Packaged Foods, the Peel the Love Summer Food Truck Tour kicks-off in Seattle over Memorial Weekend and visits Sacramento, Calif.; Los Angeles; Phoenix; Houston; Des Moines, Iowa; Baltimore and Washington, D.C., before concluding in New York City on Labor Day.

Throughout the tour, Dole and Blue Diamond Almond Breeze will target health-, fitness- and lifestyle-oriented consumers and will partner with retailers to suggest new serving, pairing and entertaining options. Both brands will also reach out to registered dieticians (RDs), supermarket nutritionists, food bloggers and other influentials about the health, taste and convenience advantages of bananas, almonds and almondmilk.

The new recipes that will be available for sampling range from Banana Pineapple Coconut Smoothiesand Thai Noodle Salad with Banana Peanut Dressing to Banana Pudding Pops, DOLE Banana S’mores, Dole Grilled Bananas and Chocolate Monkeys. Some combine DOLE Bananas with Blue Diamond Almond Breeze Almondmilk.

“We’re excited to be partnering with Blue Diamond to take our original recipes, healthy-eating tips and other fun information to banana-loving fans right where they live,” explained Bil Goldfield, communications manager of Dole Fresh Fruit. “The whole goal of the three-month exhibition is to show that, beyond their well-known health, energy, versatility and recipe benefits, bananas are simply a lot of fun.”

The Tour is part of DOLE® Bananas Peel the Love, a bold, year-long initiative stressing the fun, versatility, irreverence and universally beloved aspects of the world’s most popular fruit. In addition to showcasing new recipes and serving suggestions, Dole will introduce new ways to outreach to the more than 600,000 DOLE Banana, 800,000 Dole Packaged Foods and 122,000 Blue Diamond Almond Breeze social media fans.

“Dole and Blue Diamond are iconic brands that represent the best of fun, healthy summer eating,” said Suzanne Hagener, senior marketing manager of Blue Diamond Almond Breeze. “The Peel the Love Food Truck Tour brings some of the summer’s best eating and entertaining ideas to consumers and retailers across the country.”

For Peel the Love program details, including Food Truck Tour stops, as well as DOLE Banana recipes, serving suggestions and other information, go to http://www.dole.com/peelthelove, or follow us on Facebook or Twitter at www.facebook.com/DOLEBananas or www.twitter.com/DOLEBananas, respectively.

For Dole Packaged Foods information and recipes visit dole.com, or join the healthy conversation on social at facebook.com/Dole and twitter.com/DoleFoods.

For information and recipes on Blue Diamond Almond Breeze® Almondmilk please go towww.almondbreeze.com, or follow us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/AlmondBreeze.

About Blue Diamond Growers

Blue Diamond Growers is the world’s largest almond marketer and processor. It is responsible for developing the industry and opening world markets over 100 years ago when Spain and Italy were the major producers of almonds. While the U.S. market is the largest single market for almonds, over 70 percent of them are exported to 95 countries worldwide. Almonds are California’s largest food export and they rank among the top ten food exports in America. California produces over 80 percent of the world’s supply.

About DOLE Bananas

DOLE is the top-selling banana in America and the world — in both conventional and organic product categories. From its founding by James Drummond Dole, the company has built its reputation on a ceaseless commitment to quality. Today, the DOLE brand stands for more than 150 years of quality produce — and the world’s largest supplier of fresh fruits and vegetables, including bananas. Dole strives to grow, produce, harvest, transport and distribute its bananas and other produce in the most environmentally and socially conscious way possible.

About Dole Packaged Foods

Dole Packaged Foods LLC, a subsidiary of Dole International Holdings, is a leader in sourcing, processing, distributing and marketing fruit products and healthy snacks throughout the world. Dole markets a full line of canned, jarred, cup, frozen and dried fruit products and is an innovator in new forms of packaging and processing fruit. For more information please visit www.dole.com.

About Dole Food Company, Inc.

Dole Food Company with 2012 revenues of $4.2 billion, is one of the world’s largest producers and marketers of high-quality fresh fruit and fresh vegetables, Dole is an industry leader in many of the products it sells, as well as in nutrition education and research. For more information, please visitwww.dole.com or http://investors.dole.com.

http://www.fortmilltimes.com/2013/05/23/2712198/seattle-tacoma-residents-can-peel.html

Sam Walsh of Cafe Rouge serves up some fish and chips to hungry customers during a previous Food Truck Tuesdays event.
News-Journal file

PALM COAST — Savory food and fire safety tips will be the theme of this month’s Food Truck Tuesdays event, according to a City of Palm Coast news release.

Bacon Bacon Facebook
Bacon Bacon, a food truck restaurant, was forced to close recently after neighbor complaints of a strong pork odor led to the discovery of the business’s lack of permits.

A San Francisco restaurant was forced to close this week after complaints that the area surrounding the Bacon-centric food truck smelled too strongly of the popular breakfast food. Bacon Bacon was forced to close after neighbor’s complaints, citing the pork odor was created due to illegal grease dumping, uncovered the truck’s lack of proper permits.

NBC News reported Friday that neighbors near the popular Calif. food truck were unable to come to an agreement with the owner, Jim Angelus, over what they considered an “offensive smell” issue due to the restaurant’s heavy pork usage, resulting in the closing of Bacon Bacon Friday.

Neighbors insisted the “porcine aroma” was due to grease being illegally disposed of in nearby sewers, claiming they offered to buy Angelus a new air filter to help remedy the issue but were denied. Complaints led to the discovery that the truck lacked “proper health permits” leading to its recent closure.

Restaurant owner, Jim Angelus, dismissed the reports on the official Bacon Bacon’s Facebook page Thursday, calling the claims of illegal behavior “silly” saying the truck’s grease trap will get picked up and cleaned out on Tuesday. One neighbor of the truck commented on the reports asking the business to remain open despite criticism.

“Hold on! I’m one of Bacon Bacon’s neighbors and I believe I speak for 99 percent of the neighborhood when I say: ‘Stay HERE,’” said Lucia Tallchief Mele. “Don’t let a coupla nasty nay-sayers or clueless bureaucrats deprive you for your livelihood! We will fight for you [sic],” she said.

Angelus has since started a petition on the company’s website asking loyal customers to assist in keeping the truck in their current Frederick Street location saying, “Two neighbors near Bacon Bacon want to see our doors closed. We need your support.” Over 1,800 supports have already signed the petition which was first created in Feb.

According to the site, the food truck was previously involved in one prior incident. The post stating the truck was involved in a fire aboard the vehicle in Nov. 2012. No workers or customers were hurt in the blaze that reportedly wasn’t due to current grease issues.

The popular restaurant was featured on the Discovery series, “United States of Bacon,” which classified the establishment and a “portable pork paradise” and “a four wheel shrine to swine.” Angelus said he started the business after a lifelong passion for food, majorly bacon. One of the businesses best-selling products included their grilled cheese sandwich which includes “bacon jam,” a mix of pork, maple syrup and coffee.

“I told the guys if they forget an ingredient, just put bacon on there,” said Angelus on the program.

NBC reported that Angelus is currently working on reving the business in a location where an approved kitchen is available.

http://www.ibtimes.com/san-francisco-restaurant-bacon-bacon-closed-over-neighbor-complaints-bacon-smell-owner-jim-angelus

NYC food cart (Image by Tony Fischer)

Mobile eateries just can’t seem to catch a break! Modern street kitchens that serve up an array of dazzlingly varied cuisines to foodies in New York are under scrutiny, yet again. This time it is for issues like health violations, overcrowded sidewalks, and a thriving black market for permits. The city’s Health Department has released a list of new mandates that will require permits and govern cart size, hand washing, and storage facilities for street food vendors.

Food carts on sidewalks can be a maximum of 5’ wide and 10’ long. This measure is intended to prevent overcrowding. Food trucks do not have any such size limit.

Another policy will simplify equipment requirements. Equipment should correspond to the kind of food sold and cooking methods used. The Gothamist reports, “Carts and trucks that prepare raw meat will be required to have a sink for hand washing, while those that sell only prepackaged foods will not.” This rule will help mobile food vendors meet sanitary standards.

Food Safety Sign

The new regulations are a reaction to the health codes being continuously violated by street food vendors. NYC Department of Health collected 18 months of food cart violation information. Subsequently, it tracked down carts with the highest number of violations in the last year.

Myfoxny reports , “In 2012 the New York City Department of Health recorded nearly 7,000 violations ranging from live rodents to food being kept at dangerous temperatures. Some vendors were even serving mystery meat.”

Although the NYC Health Department fines totaled almost $16 million in 2012, $15 million remained uncollected. In most cases, collecting fines is difficult because food carts are mobile.

Another regulation may be the solution. Permit holders will have to be present during inspections. This change will also curb the black market in permits where a $200 permit can go for $15,000. Some permit holders live as far away as Texas, “making it clear their real business was in illicit licensing and not food.” (Source: New York Post)

A further regulation requires facilities that store food trucks and carts for the night to keep a log of the dates and times of the vehicles’ entries and exits. This will also enable the Health Department to track down trucks and carts to collect fines.

Other problems plague food trucks. City Councilman Dan Garodnick has proposed a bill to designate a maximum of 450 parking spaces in NYC for food trucks. It would also set a limit of one vehicle per block. Max Crespo, owner of a food truck, said, “I find it hard to believe that it would pass. People like street food. People need to eat. New York is a giant machine and food is the fuel.” Parking restrictions would limit the options for customers and could affect jobs. (Source: Daily News)

http://www.mysafetysign.com/blog/nyc-street-food-vendors/

These are good times for omnivores in Ottawa!

Ottawa City Hall is a place, I suspect, where politicians are more accustomed to circling wagons than food trucks.

So imagine my curiosity Wednesday on spotting a cluster of street vendors corralled over lunch hour at Marion Dewar Plaza, outside the Laurier Street entrance, where they served eager folk a taste of new and interesting sidewalk eats the public can expect in the nation’s capital this summer.

By any measure it was a glorious, warm and bright early-summer afternoon, with postcard-perfect weather smiling on a momentous occasion — celebrating an end to the city’s moratorium on new street food vendors that, sadly, saw the number of carts and trucks dwindle to 32 from about 100 just two decades ago. For a complete list of trucks, carts and locations, click here.

Accomplished restaurateurs and experienced vendors promise much more diverse fare, often with an ethnic twist, to supplement the usual tired staples of poutine, fries, dogs and sausages that have distinguished the city’s street food scene for so long. But at the end of the day it’s all still sidewalk food and much of it remains high-caloric, which in popular Food Network culture seems enough to thrill an enthusiastic audience.

Above left, Layne Belcher and Matthew Hinds of Urban Cowboy serve brisket from a table Wednesday outside Ottawa City Hall. They expect their truck will be ready later this month.

And what an audience it is. People Wednesday were encouraged to purchase one of 550 plastic bracelets for a $10 donation to the Shepherds of Good Hope soup kitchen, which entitled bearers to try the victuals. The astonishing thing was, within 20 minutes every bracelet was snapped up — and still the people came, queuing in long lines here, there and everywhere — well over 1,000 by my estimate — all anxious to sample, and every one hungry for more.

Those who didn’t get a coveted bracelet had to pay as they munched. Not surprisingly, some carts ran out.

“We had to limit the bracelets because vendors are donating the food,” says Anna Silverman, executive director of the Shepherds Foundation. “We’re very pleasantly shocked by the turnout.

“It’s clearly something Ottawa wants, so having all these new vendors is a very good thing. Everyone is anxious to sample their food,” Silverman says.

It’s all about new and interesting choices,” adds city employee Maria Grant, in line outside the brightly coloured Ottawa Streat Gourmet, one of 11 new trucks (plus another seven carts), by chef/owner Ben Baird (photo, left), who previously launched his successful upscale Urban Pear restaurant in the Glebe in 2002.

Baird’s is a repurposed 21-foot, 1994 Chevy P30 diesel van, formerly a Snap-On Tools wagon, he had outfitted by Kitchens on Wheels Canada in Alexandria, at a cost of $60,000.

“For lunch it means you can get not just the usual fries and sausages,” Grant says.

“Now you can find everything from Korean to Vietnamese, and the big turnout today speaks to the fact Ottawa is dying for food like this.”

A selection of street eats served outside city hall. Clockwise from top left, Mr. Churritos’ traditional deep-fried Mexican flour dough dusted with cinnamon and sugar; from Bobites, baked potato, sour cream, butter, cheddar and chives; from Urban Cowboy, the Belcher Burger with smoked brisket, barbecue sauce on a potato bun with onion, pickle.

On hand for the honours was mayor Jim Watson, as always, along with a small gaggle of councillors including Mark Taylor, chair of the city’s community and protective services committee that shephered the new and relaxed rules for 18 successful applicants through city hall in February. Also on hand were four out of five members of the volunteer selection committee who vetted 61 applications based on a potential score of 100, as well as standup comedian and television celebrity James Cunningham, host of the Food Network show Eat St.

“Ottawa is so hungry, and it’s so wonderful to see this,” Cunningham told revenous well-wishers.

“Ottawa is now a leader in Canada in the food truck revolution … I couldn’t be happier as a food truck aficionado,” he says.

Photo L-R, Red Roaster Food Truck owners Glen Galbraith, Steve Dupras.

Adds the mayor: “These 18 new food vendors bring their own unique tastes and cuisines to the streets of Ottawa — from Asian to frozen yogurt.”

In a few cases, trucks were not ready to press into service: Some are still being built, while others are waiting for final government permits, which obliged a few operators to set up makeshift stands. “Our truck will be out in June,” says Wasi Choudhry, who calls his operation Olive Green, offering south Asian cuisine, which translates into a range of Indian and Pakistani snacks, entrées and desserts from samosas to butter chicken and lassis.

“We’re new in the food truck business, but we operate a restaurant called Olive Green inside Midway Family Fun Park on Kaladar Avenue. We have a passion for food and when we saw the city was looking for diversity we definitely applied and got it. Our food is very tasty — we’re using home recipes that people appreciate,” Choudhry says.

Above right, owner Ulises Ortega prepares churros, a Mexican deep-fried sweet pastry at Mr. Churritos.

Red Roaster Food Truck owners Glen Galbraith and Steve Dupras did their own work, outfitting a 21-foot former Frito-Lay delivery truck now complete with stainless sinks, counters, fryers and an expensive Rational oven that can perfectly roast a flock of eviscerated chickens simply by pushing a button. Unfortunately, they’re still awaiting final health and safety permits, and so could not serve food at the grand unveiling last week. The partners figure they’ve invested $110,000 — considerably less coin that leasing and fitting a traditional bricks-and-mortar restaurant.

“I had this vision of doing a truck more than a year ago,” Galbraith says, “so I bought the truck in Indiana. We spent a harsh winter getting it up here and retrofitting it.

“Originally we were going to do rotisserie chicken and call it Turns, but because propane is so expensive and you can only carry a limited amount of gas we figured the rotisserie would consume too much fuel. So we went with the German combination oven, which is six times more efficient. The Rational can cook 18 chickens in 36 minutes and it does absolutely everything.” He”ll be serving chicken, shaved beef, meatball tortillas, roast potatoes, slaw and fried noodle balls.

“Being mobile for me is a big attraction,” Dupras adds. “And we were able to do the outfitting work ourselves.”

Layne Belcher and partner Matthew Hinds expect their truck, Urban Cowboy, will be ready later this month serving Texas street food. On Wednesday, they set up tables and dished up smoked brisket with barbecue sauce on a potato bun with onion and pickle, made famous when Belcher’s dad, the late CFL star football great Val Belcher with the Ottawa Rough Riders (1979-83), used to serve food at Lansdowne Park. The tradition lives forever on.

“Both of us really love food,” Hinds says. “We’ve been in the food industry for years and we thought this is a great forum to show what we’re about. It’s all about food and trucks without the bricks and mortar. Me and Layne just started talking about it, which led to a business plan, and then – behold! – we got a spot in the City of Ottawa.”

Clockwise from top: from ROYI Fruta cart, a tray of home-made guacamole, bean medley, red-skin potatoes, beef empanada; serving Harvey & Vern’s Olde Fashioned Soda at Ottawa Streat Gourmet; Olive Green owners Wasi Choudhry and his wife, Nighat.

Sheila Whyte, a member of the city’s truck and cart selection committee and owner of Thyme & Again Creative Catering, is confident the interest in street eats has legs with the public. “We’re catching up with the rest of the world,” she says.

“There are food trucks in every great city and we’re now part of it.”

(Only time will tell for sure. After all, I’m old enough to recall opening day in April 1993 when the city’s $17-million Lynx Stadium was packed to the rafters with 10,000 adoring fans out to welcome professional Triple-A baseball. True, the Ottawa Lynx sold out 43 games in its first season, but by 2006 the farm team had the lowest average attendance in the league, and it was gone after 2007. Today, well, the stadium stands as an underused monument to wishful thinking …

(With street food, at least, taxpayers aren’t on the hook in any big financial way. Perhaps Ottawa has done something right after all.)

Left, part owner Irene Cummings serves Latino fare at ROYI Fruta food cart.

Cathleen Kneen, also on the city committee representing Just Food, says the street food evolution reflects a change in demographics. “Food is the way people connect to express what and who we are, so now we have the opportunity to see that diversity in vibrant, dynamic and eclectic street food,” Kneen says.

Philip Powell, city manager of licensing, permits and markets, says he’s blown away by the public response. By the way, without any question Powell deserves the credit for pulling this off.

“The demand and interest is beyond anything we could have imagined,” Powell says. “It’s phenomenal with the public interest, the number of applications and the interest here today.”

“People eat like this all over the world,” says selection committee member Scott Warrick, a chef/instructor at Algonquin College, representing the local chefs federation.

“And for young people having a truck or cart is a more affordable way to get into the business and show their skills.”

In fact, Warrick says, Algonquin College is also considering setting up its very own student-manned food truck.

Hey, why not?

http://blogs.ottawacitizen.com/2013/05/12/the-food-trucks-cometh-oh-my/

CLOVER’S TRUCK AT SOWA OPEN MARKET. PHOTO VIA SOWA FACEBOOK PAGE

These days, there’s a food truck on every street corner in Boston. And while the trucks are definitely a cool way to get your lunch, it must be said that some of the offerings aren’t always the healthiest. (Grilled cheese and cupcakes, anyone?) But don’t despair yet—so that you may hold onto your food-on-the-go habit, we found five of the healthiest food trucks in the city.

Clover Food Lab

This company is obsessed with keeping your food as fresh as possible. The menus change daily, and according to Clover’s website, they don’t own a single freezer (seriously), source as much as possible locally and organically, and make everything but barbeque sauce, mayonnaise, and ketchup fresh daily. If you’re as intrigued as we are, track down one of the Clover food trucks, which can be found all over the city throughout the course of the week.

Prices range from $2 to $7, hours vary by location. 

Compliments

Compliments, which was started last year and rotates among a variety of locations, uses fresh, in-season produce from local farms to craft its made-to-order foods. Most of the options are sandwiches, though there are also mouthwatering (and often gluten-free) sides, like tempura veggies and sweet potato fries, and fruit-based desserts.

Prices range from $2 to $7, open for lunch and dinner.

Momogoose

Founded by two MIT alums, this truck serves up authentic southeast Asian fare (think ramen and pho), while making it a point to keep fat and calories down. And you can feel good about your food since Momogoose invests its profits in charities like the UN’s World Food Programme. Last but not least, with two trucks circulating, you’re bound to find it when you need it.

$6 for an entree or $10 for a combo, open from 10:30 a.m. to 2:30 or 3:30 p.m.

Lefty’s Silver Cart

Lefty’s specializes in vegetarian sandwiches, with tasty-sounding options like a portabella mushroom “burger” and a fig and goat cheese sandwich. They also sometimes come out with soup or salad specials and serve all sandwiches with a veggie side. You can find the truck at SoWa Open Market on Sundays from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., or at Union Square Plaza on Thursdays from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m.

Prices range from $5 to $8, see hours above.

Mother Juice

Mother Juice combines two food trends: fresh juice and smoothies. The truck can be found at SoWa and other area farmers’ markets with a menu that changes weekly and features produce from Massachusetts farms. Plus, the pulp that isn’t used in intriugingly-named juices like Liquid Sunshine and Boston on My Mind is recycled into treats like ice pops, fruit leather, baked goods, and more.

Locations and hours vary.

http://www.bostonmagazine.com/health/blog/2013/05/08/healthy-food-trucks-boston/

The lengthy and often brutal battle over a rewrite of the regulations governing food trucks in the city saw a victory for the mobilized on Thursday. The New Orleans City Council passed a reform measure that allows more food trucks to take the streets, and gives them more room to roam.

But there was some heat in the mobile kitchen, as Councilwoman Jacquelyn Brechtel Clarkson stood in opposition to the legislation crafted by her at-large colleague Stacy Head.

The proposed pilot program, first floated months ago by Head, would add 75 new food truck permits and extensively update a law drafted back in the 1950s. But even Head had now idea how extensive that update that was going to be.

The changes include a significantly expanded market for potential food truck vendors, allowing the number of permits for mobile restos to increase to 200 from their current 100.

The ordinance will also open up parts of the Biomedical District, the Treme, and the CBD as fair game for food truck fare. However, the revision includes the areas in the French Quarter and Frenchmen Street, and the CBD between Poydras St. and Howard Ave. in the no-food-truck zone.

With many food truck association members, the truck owners themselves, as well as current and former Louisiana Restaurant Association (LRA) members, and attorneys in attendance at the meeting, the discussion about Head’s updates went through a series of submitted amendments and still more on-the-spot amendments  the final version of the bill that passed. In all, the City Council took 11 votes on the legislation.

Among the sucessful amendments were a provision that delineated specific fines and forfeiture of permit for certain violations of the updated code. A series of guidelines on bathrooms included requirements that trucks cannot be 200 feet near another operating brick-and-mortar establishment without prior approval. Vendors also required to display the permit number on their trucks.

 Some of the attending owners and vendors took time to speak, while others simply ceded their time to New Orleans Food Truck Association representatives and attorneys. One food truck vendor who did speak to the Council directly was Theresa Galli of Fat Falafel. Fat Falafel operates in a number of areas, including on Oretha Castley Blvd., which is still a re-emerging neighborhood and may not offer all the requirement dictated by the new law. Even worse for the food trucks, a restaurant could come into the neighborhood, piggy-back on their success, and kick the trucks out, Galli said.

 ”You’re asking us to be the forefront in revitalizing these neighborhoods,” Galli said. ”But when the restaurants move in, we have to go and find a new clientele?”

 Similar arguments were also made that a number of the proposed restrictions would prevent these vendors from operating in a number of the, “Food Deserts,” that exist in the city. Others said most food trucks have successfully operated in residential areas up to now. Even though they operatied without the bathroom requirement as the law currently allows, they doled out grub without issue.

 Attorney Andrew Legrand, who represents the Food Truck Coalition, pointed out that this evidence shows how unnecessary and burdensome these restrictions would be. The only reason he and his clients can see for them is to establish economic protection from restaurants who fear the competition.

 ”What else is it designed to do?” Legrand asked. “Has anyone not with the LRA called for this?”

 Still, the “potty” amendment went through, as did the minimum distance restriction Legrand spoke of (albeit with the newly reduced 200-foot requirement).

More surprising than the public comments and outcries were the number of critiques and even flat-out snipes exchanged by many on the Council dais. President Head called to question why some members had sent in their amendments as late as 10 p.m. the night before, an action that prevented all parties from being properly prepared for debate.

One of the final hurdles the legislation tackled was a proposed non-severability clause, offered up by Clarkson. Had this amendment passed, the laws woud’ve been thrown out if any court rejected or nullified any part of the ordinance as it passed. Ultimately, the courts will not have the right to bring the new laws to a halt, as the provision was defeated.

The final, amended ordinance passed by a vote of 6-1, with Councilwoman Cynthia Hedge-Morrell casting the sole no vote.

http://www.noladefender.com/content/tr23uc56kin

Bob Block, Giana Wilkinson, Kelly Zoet, and Leslie Venetz buy lunch at the Brand BBQ Market truck in Chicago. (Anthony Souffle/Chicago Tribune / April 12, 2013)

This year’s Taste of Chicago will have a new addition: food trucks.

Mayor Emanuel’s office on Friday announced the inclusion of food trucks at the Taste, to be held July 10-14 in Grant Park.

“This will be a great way for many Chicagoans to get a sense of the excitement of this industry and sample some great food,” Emanuel said in a news release.

Food trucks will operate beginning one hour before each night concert at the Petrillo Music Shell and serve concertgoers for the duration of the concert, according to the release.

The trucks, which will be parked on the centerfield concrete path east of the pavilion lawn seating, will be charged an amount equal to 25 percent of their proceeds in exchange for not paying the application fee other vendors submit to be part of the Taste.

By comparison, restaurants picked to participate in the Taste over five days pay a fee of $3,000, said Cindy Gatziolis, spokeswoman for the city’s Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events. In addition, any business part of the Taste must pay $125 for a temporary food vendor license, she said.

“It sounds like a real cool idea and a great idea, but I’d have to crunch the numbers to see if it’s really plausible with 25 percent. That’s definitely a lot,” said Tiffany Kurtz, owner of Flirty Cupcakes food truck.

There are a lot of costs associated with running a food truck, she said. So far, Flirty Cupcakes has only participated in events where there is no fee because the truck helps drive people to the event with its social media reach.

Food trucks could help draw crowds back to the Taste, which struggled and lost money last year, said Amy Le, founder of the Illinois Food Truck Association.

“At this point, I’m just glad the city is considering letting food trucks participate,” said Le, who operated the Duck ‘n’ Roll food truck.

“Every year it’s the same vendors and there’s nothing ever really new. I think adding food trucks will bring excitement back along with bringing new restaurants as well.”

She said she would have to consider how many people she would expect to serve and how much money she would need to make to still be ahead by the end of the day even with the 25 percent cut going to the city. She questioned why food trucks have operating restrictions when other restaurants could have food booths open all day at the Taste.

The food trucks are intended to be an amenity for concertgoers, Gatziolis said. The trucks at the back of the lawn can serve people waiting for the bands to start and during intermission so concertgoers won’t have to hike over to the main strip of booths, she said.

Food truck operators seem receptive to the idea of being charged a percentage versus a fee to participate because there would be less risk to be hit hard financially if the event is not successful.

“If we don’t do well, then we don’t have to give everything up,” said Laura Pekarik, owner of Cupcakes for Courage food truck. “If it bombs, the best case scenario is I’m at the Taste of Chicago – that’s pretty cool.”

Before signing up to be at the Taste, she said, she would have to find out if it would work logistically, taking into account questions such as how she would restock cupcakes and keep them refrigerated in the summer heat and how many cupcakes she would need to sell to turn a profit since she donates 10 percent of her sales already for cancer research. She would like to research what bands are playing, what type of draw they have, and how many other trucks would be selling alongside her, she said.

The same Taste food and beverage tickets will be accepted by the trucks. The food trucks will offer two smaller Taste portions as well as up to four regular size items, the release said.

This comes after the City Council passed the food truck ordinance in July allowing trucks to cook onboard, creating designated food truck stands and increasing license fees.

Three food truck operators, including Pekarik, sued the city over the ordinance in November challenging the 200-foot ban from street-level restaurants and the installation of GPS devices.

http://www.redeyechicago.com/news/local/redeye-food-trucks-at-the-taste-20130412,0,41468.story

BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) – A letter from Schwan’s, a popular food truck service, was recently sent to its customers regarding the recall of Rich’s food products.

Rich Products Corporation, one of Schwan’s suppliers announced a recall pertaining to several of their food products last week. More than 20 people throughout the country became sick from consuming food from Rich’s corporation.

Although Schwan’s has received no illness complaints, they are still asking its customers to return Schwan’s® LiveSmart™ Baked Mozzarella Bites and Schwan’s® LiveSmart™ Mini Meatball Sandwiches to their Schwan’s sales representative.

The company is also expanding their voluntary recall and including all Mozarella Bites sold by Market Day.

For more information on this widespread recall, visit the Centers for Disease and Prevention Control website

Rich Products notified Schwan’s of the recall due to a possible E. Coli contamination.

Schwan’s say’s their Home Service will credit their customers account with the cost of the product.

For anyone with questions, call at 1-866-972-4926. To learn more about the Rich  Products Corporation recall, visit www.farmrich.com.

http://www.wivb.com/dpp/news/local/rich-recall-affects-schwans-products

FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) – Food trucks are becoming an even bigger part of the food scene in Fresno. But you may wonder if they are safe places to eat. The county health department does require them to be inspected, just like restaurants.

The last two weeks in March is a time mobile food vendors need to be ready for. That’s when they have to bring their trucks or even bikes and pushcarts in to be looked over by the health department.

Dave Pomaville of the Fresno County Department of Public Health says it’s a big job.

Pomaville explained, “We have about 450 different mobile food vending vehicles of all different shapes and sizes each of them will come through here over the next few days and be inspected by one of the department staff.”

Among things inspectors check are cleanliness, they make sure the water is hot and the refrigerators are cold.

Tony Mullings owns Tako Bak the Valley’s only Korean Barbeque truck. He doesn’t mind the inspection process.

Mullings said, “It’s necessary, we have to be clean and be inspected, let the people know that our truck is clean so they will be comfortable eating off of it.”

Mobile food operators can prepare for this inspection, but Pomaville says surprise inspections are also held.

Pomaville added, “While they are out in the community working we will stop by and do unannounced inspections of these facilities while they are operational to make sure they have the proper food handling practices in place.”

You can check out the inspection records of mobile vendors, or any restaurant by going to the Fresno County Health Department website. Click here http://bit.ly/YFmSEZ.

http://abclocal.go.com/kfsn/story?section=news/local&id=9043590