WILMINGTON, MA — At its meeting earlier this month, the Wilmington Board of Health signaled its desire to eliminate the town’s restrictive regulations on mobile food trucks.
Currently, the Town of Wilmington does not allow any food preparation on mobile food trucks. Any “potentially hazardous food” served on a food truck must be prepared BEFORE entering Wilmington.
“That’s why a lot of food trucks don’t run in Wilmington,” said Health Director Shelly Newhouse. “It’s too hard for them to come into town.”
Newhouse is proposing that the Board of Health completely eliminate its existing mobile food truck regulations and have the food trucks just operate under the town’s existing food code regulations.
“I looked at towns all around Wilmington and then some,” said Newhouse. “None have special regulations but us. Food trucks basically follow each town’s regular food code. Wilmington is the only ones that prohibits food trucks from preparing foods in town.”
Newhouse suggested that eliminating the regulations would increase food truck visits to town, pointing to Yentile Farm as a potential popular future venue.
The town’s strict regulations towards mobile food trucks predate Newhouse, who noting they were created more than 20 years ago and haven’t been amended since.
“I personally have no problem with this change. It seems to be working everywhere else,” said Board of Health Chair Elizabeth Sabounjian. “I would favor amending the regs to eliminate the prohibition.”
Saboujian noted that restaurants and supermarkets in town may not want the competition, but “that’s not the Board’s problem.” Newhouse said she would investigate whether food trucks would have to pay the town’s added meals tax.
Newhouse said the Board of Health would need to hold a public hearing, tentatively scheduled for October, before a board vote could occur.
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