Food Protection Trends - November/December 2020 - 421

to the FDA Food code, chemical substances used for
cleaning and maintenance must be stored away from food
(43, 44), which could be a challenge for food trucks with
limited space. A carefully designed layout in the food truck
is crucial to maximize the use of limited space.
Handwashing remains another top food safety concern.
For example, it is difficult to maintain the proper
temperature of water for handwashing. Many food truck
operations depend on an electric generator to power
equipment and to heat water to the necessary temperature
for the requirements in food preparation. As stated by one
participant, "Generator at certain sizes can't run a cooler,
flat top and water heater for handwashing." Because of
this, many participants opted to use hand sanitizer for
hand cleaning, even though hand sanitizer is not a suitable
substitute for handwashing. The FDA Food Code (42, 43,
44) states that hands must be washed at a temperature of
100°F and specifies that the use of hand sanitizer may be
applied in addition to handwashing. Participants were aware
of these requirements but stated that they could not always
be in compliance with these standards, which is similar
to findings by Samapundo et al. (37) that showed proper
handwashing did not always occur. Moreover, outdoor
environments can create a problem when addressing the
handwashing requirement due to the lack of running
water on food trucks, as well as having the proper water
temperature for handwashing and sanitizing utensils
and cookware (27, 32, 46). As stated in previous studies,
handwashing is a critical area to be emphasized because of
its value in reducing foodborne illness (15, 17).
Equipment modification was another unique area
identified by the food truck owners and managers as essential
to the food truck sector. A few participants indicated that
they modified equipment to meet the needs of their business,
even though the modification may not meet the approved
standards set by the FDA. In certain locations where food
trucks operate, the food preparation and cooking equipment
in the food trucks must be inspected by the fire department.
The fire department will take notice of any defects in the
modified equipment, but not a health inspector. Because of
this, the modified equipment may not meet the food safety
requirements for equipment, such as reaching the correct
temperature for handwashing, coolers holding the right
temperature for cold food, or heating food to the proper
temperature (31). Additionally, an increase in self-modified
equipment causes concern in the area of fire safety. The lack
of standards and ineffective inspections is a public safety
concern because food truck explosions from propane tanks
have occurred in several cities in the United States, especially
for those trucks that are unlicensed and have modified
equipment (32). Regular inspection and monitoring from
both health inspectors and fire marshals are recommended
to make sure the modified equipment meets the standards to
reduce food safety issues and fire hazards.

The power supply on a food truck is a unique challenge
that is not guaranteed as the vehicles could be on the move
and must solely rely on the generators (31). This could
increase the risk of foodborne illness, as statistics showed
that food trucks with malfunctioning refrigeration units
and improper handwashing were major causes of foodborne
illness (24, 31, 46).
The present study revealed that routine inspections in the
food truck sector are not being performed regularly. The
mobile nature of a food truck makes it difficult for health
inspectors to locate the food truck while it is in operation.
Locating the food trucks is a time-consuming process which
adds additional work hours for health inspectors (46). On
average, brick and mortar businesses are inspected every
6 months by the health department (44). However, food
trucks may not be inspected with the same frequency; in
fact, in the present study, a few participants stated that they
have yet to be inspected by health inspectors. This finding
was similar to previous research by Vanschaik and Tuttle
(46). These investigators found that the food trucks were
inspected when they were not in operation, and therefore,
it was not possible to evaluate food and water safety risk
factors associated with the food trucks. Routine inspections
are necessary in order to protect the general public from
health risks, and if food safety violations are reported,
further investigations should take place to determine the
root cause of these violations.
Limitations and recommendations for future research
The limitations of the study include the following. The
majority of the participants in the focus group interviews
were from the southeastern region of the United States,
and the participants in the face-to-face interviews were
from four cities (i.e., Atlanta, Birmingham, Miami, and
San Francisco). Due to geographical limitations and
lack of consistency in the laws in the food truck sector
throughout the country (48), the results of the study
should be cautiously generalized beyond this geographic
region. Future studies may include food truck owners
and managers from a broader geographical base in order
to gain a larger perspective concerning the issues related
to food safety training and practices in this sector of the
food service industry. In addition, the sample size was
small because some food truck operators did not provide
their correct contact information on the websites, or their
business operation may have been suspended during the
data collection period. Future studies may utilize a different
sampling method, such as snowball sampling, to recruit
more participants. It should be noted that certification of
food safety was self-reported. Even though focus groups and
face-to-face interviews provide the advantage of allowing
researchers to observe social cues and body language of
the interviewees (34), the results of this study may be
affected by social desirability. A future study may include

November/December Food Protection Trends

421
Food Protection Trends - November/December 2020

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Food Protection Trends - November/December 2020
