Who Is This Resource For?
While this guide is broadly applicable to anyone interested in or active in the mobile food vending community, this site is specifically targeted at the following groups:
Eastside Grown Fellows: Use this guide to get a sense of the basic knowledge required to run a successful mobile food vending business! This guide assumes no prior experience with food trucks and carts, and introduces fundamental terms, Veggielution’s established practices, and basic food handling and safety protocols sanctioned by the county of Santa Clara. You can treat this resource like a self-learning guide during your fellowship or as a handbook to be referred to on the fly while working events.
Veggielution Staff: This guide acts as a knowledge repository for Veggielution’s truck and cart operations and training materials. As an aggregated source of information, this guide can serve as a “source of truth” for operations and an educational teaching resource.
Santa Clara County MFF Staff: Use this guide to understand the operational protocols of one of San Jose’s most established MFF nonprofits. This resource is designed to act as a window into Veggielution’s MFF procedures. We hope it helps SCC staff members understand how country residents are interpreting and executing established guidelines and leads to a greater cross-pollination of knowledge between both Veggielution and the SCC, as well as the broader MFF community in the SF Bay Area.
What This Guide Contains
This manual acts as a repository for Veggielution’s current knowledge around MFF operations, as well as a supplementary resource to the Santa Clara County (SCC) food safety program. While it cannot replace sanctioned food safety training programs, it covers all the topics necessary to safely handle food and operate Veggielution food carts and trucks. As stated above, treat this site like a reference guide rather than a textbook. (For official knowledge and resources recommended by the SCC, please refer to the Santa Clara food safety website.) Most sections of this handbook can be applied to other MFFs outside of Veggielution’s scope. Please take advantage of the information compiled here to help start your own MFF business!
Curious about food handling and safety?
After you receive your food handling certification from the SCC, our section on the fundamentals of food handling serves as a great quick reference if you are ever unsure of what to do. This section covers everything from general food safety to food sourcing and allergies. This information can be applied to any MFF in Santa Clara county, whether associated with Veggielution or not.
New to the space?
Refer to our sections on standard operating procedures, food trucks, food carts, commissary kitchens, and annual inspections to familiarize yourself with the lay of the land. Use the Appendix to view common day-to-day resources Veggielution uses during operations, relevant paperwork, and our glossary of terms.
Are you getting ready for a Veggielution event?
Make sure you review Veggielutions standard operating procedures in the Appendix, and our guides on truck and cart operation and event preparation!