Georgetown University’s Newspaper of Record since 1920

The Hoya

Georgetown University’s Newspaper of Record since 1920

The Hoya

Georgetown University’s Newspaper of Record since 1920

The Hoya

Food Trucks Hit a Bump

Most students know by now the familiar jingle that means the Sweetflow Mobile has arrived. In recent years, a vibrant culture has cropped up around mobile eateries. Unfortunately, this emerging local industry may undergo some major changes this November.

A referendum was recently proposed that would bring food trucks under heavy government control. Prompted by special interests, the D.C. Department of Consumer and Regulatory Affairs has proposed creating a commission to oversee street-side vendors. Suggested regulations include new health standards, limits on the number and location of vendor sites and rules on the hours of operation of these kitchens-on-wheels. Under the new provisions, food vendors would only be able to operate during restricted hours. Likewise, a limited number of vending locations would be assigned to specific food trucks by the District and distributed by a lottery system. The proposed changes will inevitably alter the nature of the street-side vending industry for the worse.

The push for regulations is driven by the Restaurant Association of Metropolitan Washington and local Business Improvement Districts. They see this novel street-side industry as having an unfair advantage. In an open letter, the RAMW argues that permanent business owners find themselves disadvantaged by the tax, utility and rent payments they must make for daily operation; mobile vendors avoid such costs by capitalizing on public space to make a profit.

Some ideas, like those prohibiting food vendors near certain locations, like fire hydrants, intersections, crosswalks and schools, make sense. Other regulations that would ensure a high level of food safety are necessary for the public good.

Unfortunately, much of the plan is restrictive and suppresses an already self-regulated niche industry. These limitations, like the restricted hours of operation, stymie choices of consumers, particularly the late-night crowd; they shamelessly aim to protect established restaurants from free market competition. Many current vendors follow a common-sense code of conduct, operating within respectable hours and respecting permanent business owners by parking a sizeable distance away from store frontage. The current self-regulation is driven by consumers’ demand for their tasty offerings. Customers expect safe food served conveniently, and they demand variety, hence the emergence of a wide selection of food cuisines from Curbside Cupcake to Pedro and Vinny’s Burrito Cart.

Limiting and randomly assigning predetermined locations will stunt the growth of an emerging craft industry. The curbside laboratory that has led to the likes of Eat Wonky and Sweetflow Mobile ought not be intruded upon by D.C. bureaucracy or powerful competitors.

This Thursday and Friday, 20 of D.C.’s favorite curbside vendors will converge on CityCenterDC for the first annual Curbside Cookoff to celebrate their culinary masterpieces. Only if these small businesses continue to be given the freedom to grow will they continue to delight the District’s palates with future creations.

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