By admin 
TUCSON, Ariz. (13 News) – Food truck owners across southern Arizona are dealing with fewer customers and higher costs as high temperatures continue.
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Taqueria El Chikitin, located near Grant and Country Club, is seeing the effects during what is typically its slowest season.
Owner Arturo Hernandez said the heat makes it difficult to attract customers to the outdoor food truck.
“It’s a little hard with the heat,” Hernandez said.
Hernandez said the business sees a 30% decline in customers during the summer, and consecutive triple-digit days make conditions worse.
“It’s hard to keep the food cool, so we’re fighting every day with the refrigerators,” Hernandez said.
The Pima County Health Department requires all licensed food vendors to keep perishable foods out of the 42 to 134 degree “danger zone.”
Refrigerators storing meat, dairy, egg products, and cut vegetables must be kept at 41 degrees or below.
Brenda Katterman, environmental health supervisor with the Pima County Health Department, said food kept in that temperature range can grow bacteria.
“When it’s in that danger zone, it’s growing bacteria, and the longer bacteria grows, the more bacteria that’s there, so it’s more likely to make you sick,” Katterman said.
Hernandez said his business follows those requirements but not without difficulty.
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“We use more power to keep us cool and keep the food cool,” Hernandez said.
Katterman said food trucks struggle the most with keeping food cool, something she also sees during restaurant inspections. She recommends food truck operators keep extra coolers filled with ice on standby.
“So they’re checking those temperatures, they’re making sure that those temperatures are 41 degrees or less and then they have that extra ice, so if they find that it’s not working, they can bury their food in ice,” Katterman said.
Hernandez said he follows those steps, along with other measures to keep himself and his workers cool.
“Air conditioning plus a cooler plus another cooler and that makes everything more expensive for us because electricity is running all day long,” Hernandez said.
Hernandez said he is hoping for customers but knows he can only wait out the heat.
The Pima County Health Department is hosting two annual food vendor forums in the coming weeks to inform those new to serving food in Pima County of safe food requirements and techniques
Information on community forums HERE.
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