{"id":3171,"date":"2022-05-24T08:00:29","date_gmt":"2022-05-24T13:00:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.usedvending.com\/blog\/?p=3171"},"modified":"2022-06-14T09:12:13","modified_gmt":"2022-06-14T14:12:13","slug":"food-truck-health-inspection","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.usedvending.com\/blog\/food-truck-health-inspection\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Prepare Your Food Truck Business for a Surprise Health Inspection"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Let\u2019s face it: starting any business can be confusing because of everything you have to learn and all the requirements you need before you can officially open. Starting a food truck is no different. Finding a suitable truck, researching local and state laws, and learning about local health codes are just the tip of the iceberg. Of course, you still had to decide what cuisine to focus on (if any), plan your menu, and pick the equipment you would need.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">So you\u2019ve chosen between a <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.usedvending.com\/blog\/new-vs-used-food-trucks\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">new and used food truck<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> and installed any additional equipment. You have a menu you can work with and that your target market enjoys, and you\u2019ve started getting used to managing the business. There\u2019s one more thing you need to take note of, and that\u2019s a visit from a health inspector.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Even veterans will tell you that a health inspection can lead to even a bit of added pressure since the inspector will pay attention to the tiniest details. So how can you make sure your food truck is always ready for a health inspection, surprise or not? To help ensure you\u2019re prepared at all times, here\u2019s what inspectors typically look at. <\/span><\/p>\n<div style=\"border: 3px solid; padding: 10px; width: 100%; border-radius: 25px; border-color: #F4A70F; color: #007bff;\">\n<p style=\"color: #007bff;\">What&#8217;s Inside<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a style=\"text-decoration: none;\" href=\"#food\">Food<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a style=\"text-decoration: none;\" href=\"#equipment\">Equipment and Sanitation<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a style=\"text-decoration: none;\" href=\"#employee\">Employee Behavior<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"food\"><b>Food<\/b><\/h2>\n<p><b><\/b><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This should come as no surprise, really. You\u2019re running a business that offers food and beverages, so this is practically the first thing that health inspectors will check.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Besides making sure that any and all food on the truck is, in fact, safe for consumption, inspectors will want to be sure of several other factors. First, raw meat shouldn\u2019t touch food that\u2019s already cooked, nor should raw meat touch items that generally aren\u2019t cooked before serving, such as salads. If there are foods in the prep area, they shouldn\u2019t be exposed for too long, and food storage containers should be labeled properly.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Speaking of storage, it\u2019s important, too, that you have a way to keep track of how long some foods have been kept in stock since you don\u2019t want to be caught serving food that\u2019s going bad. You also should make sure that all ingredients are stored at safe temperatures, especially dairy products and meat. Likewise, plates and utensils should be kept in such a way to avoid being contaminated before customers get to use them.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Finally, make sure that when you cook something, it\u2019s either served immediately or stored properly, not just to avoid serving potentially contaminated food but to also avoid getting a strike from the health inspector.<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"uv-lst\" data-category=\"20\" data-count=\"6\" data-type=\"new\"> <\/div>\n<h2 id=\"equipment\"><b>Equipment and Sanitation<\/b><\/h2>\n<p><b><\/b><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Inspectors will be checking your equipment to make sure they\u2019re in proper working order and are used in sanitary conditions. So when preparing for a health inspection, you\u2019ll first want to check that you have a way to monitor the temperatures in freezers and refrigerators. There\u2019s an acceptable range these shouldn\u2019t stray from, otherwise, the health inspector may deem them as being unsuited for storing ingredients.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Next, ensure that your cleaning products &#8211; or anything with toxic chemicals, really &#8211; are kept in an area that\u2019s close enough to get to, but far enough from the food prep and cooking areas to prevent contamination. If the storage area is enclosed, so much the better. Your food truck should also have a second sink that\u2019s purely for hand-washing, again to prevent contaminating the food.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">On top of that, you should make sure that all food preparation areas are clean and properly sanitized; the same goes for the floor, all countertops, and sinks. It helps if you train your staff to clean these surfaces as they go in between batches of food prep and cooking so that any leftovers and food waste are also properly disposed of.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Speaking of disposals, that\u2019s another point that health inspectors will check, so make sure that garbage bins are emptied on a regular basis. The last thing you want is for the inspector to look inside and have the first thing they see be an overflowing trash can or garbage bag.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Finally, check that your truck is properly ventilated, or that it\u2019s equipped with all the required systems for ventilation, and if there are any dirty dishes that haven\u2019t been washed yet, make sure they\u2019re stored away from the clean ones.<\/span><br \/>\n<b><\/b><\/p>\n<h2 id=\"employee\"><b>Employee Behavior<\/b><\/h2>\n<p><b><\/b><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It\u2019s not just the equipment and ingredients that health inspectors will keep an eye on; your employees need to follow certain practices to ensure that not only are their surroundings clean, but the food served is properly cooked.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Proper handwashing techniques are the most basic and yet most important thing for you and your staff to learn, so make sure they know how to wash up before, in between, and after preparing each dish. Check that all employees use hair nets, especially if they\u2019re the ones who come in contact with the food most often, and ensure that they have the appropriate garments or protective wear such as spit guards.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Next, stay updated on food safety practices and teach your employees about them, so that if needed, they can answer the inspector\u2019s questions about proper ingredient handling and cooking procedures, such as using meat thermometers to make sure meat is correctly and thoroughly cooked.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Finally, make sure that there\u2019s a designated storage compartment or cabinet for your employees\u2019 personal items (cellphones, wallets, and the like). We understand that people like to keep such things on their person as much as possible, but a health inspector will still mark that as improper.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">With all of the above in mind, you can help your employees prepare for actual health inspections by performing regular self-inspections. These are similar to the real thing, only there\u2019s no inspector involved. Don\u2019t give them advance warning, but announce the inspection the day it\u2019s supposed to happen. That way, your employees will get used to following proper procedures at all times, and not just when they know an inspection is due.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Of course, there\u2019s nothing wrong with taking time to figure out, say,<\/span>\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.usedvending.com\/blog\/recipes-ideas-taco-truck-menu\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">new recipes for your taco truck menu<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. Just remember to devote as much time to make sure your food truck is operating properly as you do to ensure it\u2019s operating profitably. Otherwise, you may find yourself paying hefty fines or having to close because of unsanitary working conditions.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Let\u2019s face it: starting any business can be confusing because of everything you have to learn and all the requirements you need before you can officially open. Starting a food truck is no different. Finding a suitable truck, researching local and state laws, and learning about local health codes are [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":191,"featured_media":3178,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[27,317,952,35],"class_list":["post-3171","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-food-trucks","tag-food-truck","tag-food-truck-business-tips","tag-food-truck-inspection","tag-food-truck-tips"],"modified_by":"Titus Asher","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.usedvending.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3171","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.usedvending.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.usedvending.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.usedvending.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/191"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.usedvending.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3171"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.usedvending.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3171\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3223,"href":"https:\/\/www.usedvending.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3171\/revisions\/3223"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.usedvending.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3178"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.usedvending.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3171"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.usedvending.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3171"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.usedvending.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3171"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}