Last Tuesday, December 10th, the Riverside County Board of Supervisors voted 5-0 in support of lifting the ban on food trucks across the County. Riverside County was the last county in the state banning this type of business. The lifting of this ban was due to the hard work of Supervisor Kevin Jeffries who represents cities such as Riverside and Lake Elsinore and ShareKitchen’s Executive Director, Angela Janus.
While food trucks will be allowed in the County, it will be up to each city to set their guidelines as it relates to the operations of these mobile businesses. These guidelines will be enacted before next April. The Department of Environmental Health is also establishing their rules and regulations on these food businesses to ensure that Riverside County operates to the highest of standards.
In general, it is expected that food trucks will be required to have insurance against the mishandling of food that creates food borne illnesses. Worth noting, this condition of operation is not required of brick and mortar restaurants.
While the locations where food trucks will be allowed to operate will be set by each city, the County is requiring that food trucks must have the approval of a property owner before stopping to serve people. It is also expected that most cities will have restrictions so that food trucks do not set-up in front of a brick and mortar restaurant or in front of a school without the permission of that school.
ShareKitchen is currently working to build a state-of-the-art food commissary that will serve as a hub for food trucks, caterers, and food producers. The facility will serve as the home to these businesses while providing educational and food production facilities.
If you are interested in operating a food truck, call Executive Director Angela Janus at 760.459.4259 as she and ShareKitchen are working closely with the Board of Supervisors and Department of Environmental Health on this new business opportunity.
