New York City food trucks face many obstacles.
It seems fun and exciting to have your own food truck.
But food trucks in New York City face many obstacles that make it difficult to operate a successful business.
Other cities in United States, like Portland, Oregon have many thriving street food vendor businesses that offer a variety of ethnic food choices. (
NYC’s various regulations, ordinances and laws governing food preparation and mobile business permits, along with erratic law enforcement create a problem for anyone who wants to start or maintain a food truck business in the city.
While permits are not legally transferable, vendors often lease the paperwork from permit holders.
This limits the expansion of street food, and supports a system where the authorized commissaries that inspect food trucks also provide permits, giving them an oligopoly on the business.
But challenges in the industries are not just confined to one city. Another city that is struggling to keep their street food culture alive is Fukuoka, Japan.
The number of street food vendor stalls in Fukuoka has decreased from 450 during the 1960s to just 121 at last count. (2,9,1)
