Local Street Food (tasty affordable eats for communities)
Nearly all countries on earth have a street food culture. In Italy, you can buy hot slices of homemade pizza or roasted chestnuts. In Asia, every city and town has hot noodle bars. And of course New York has hot dog stands.
All the food uses real ingredients, and is freshly cooked, affordable and gives local people independent jobs (they just buy a food cart and find a spot, and then get to run their own lives).
But in England, we are all slave to the big supermarkets. If you want some hummus, you can’t find a street cart selling freshly-made batches in wraps, it’s off to the supermarket to buy a cold (Middle Eastern people eat it warm) greasy version in a plastic pot.
If you want a sandwich, you can’t find a street cart selling a homemade filling in proper bread, you have to visit a big supermarket and get some tasteless concoction (which you add a bag of crisps you didn’t really want and some fizzy pop to go with it, to make sure you get good value from the ‘meal deal’).
But abroad, people eat real food from street vendors, and then drink water or go to the bar, and enjoy a coffee with friends.
It’s a far better culture, and encourages low waste, good nutrition and money flowing back into communities. And this culture is not just in the big cities abroad, street food is everywhere.
Enter your postcode at Vegan Markets. The site works with councils to let people buy good food at affordable prices (the first one in Cambridge has supported thousands of local artisans).
How to Start a Street Food Business
It’s more complicated than it should be. Of course you need to get all your food hygiene rules and training sorted out.
Plus you’ll need public liability insurance.
You also obviously need to buy or rent a food truck/cart of some kind. And many people that rent out space require you to use plastic-free packaging.
But once that’s all sorted out, you can usually rent a space either standalone or at farmers’ markets, and also take your trade to festivals and the like.
If you like cooking and being outdoors, running a street food stall is not just a nice way to earn a living, but also good to support local farmers, keep people healthy and provide affordable food.
All while keeping money within communities, rather than like big supermarkets where most of the profits go outside your town, and into shareholder pockets.
