Build one food-safety system
Food safety on a truck is not a stack of unrelated logs. It is one chain: approved source, receiving, storage, employee health, handwashing, preparation, cooking, cooling where allowed, reheating, holding, service, cleaning, waste, and corrective action. A weak link can invalidate every step after it.
Use the current Texas rules and the approved operation. Do not copy critical limits from a generic website when the product, process, regulator, or variance differs.
Control approved sources and labels
Retain invoices and labels that identify the supplier and product. DSHS guidance states that meat and poultry used by retail and mobile food establishments must come from inspected sources and bear the applicable inspection marks. Do not accept unlabeled meat, home-prepared TCS food, unknown sauces, or products that cannot be traced.
- Write specifications for brand or approved equivalent, package size, condition, temperature, label, and substitution approval.
- Inspect delivery condition before the supplier leaves.
- Separate damaged, leaking, swollen, thawed, contaminated, or unapproved product.
- Record rejection and replacement.
- Keep traceability through repacking and preparation.
Use a practical employee-health policy
The policy should tell employees what symptoms, diagnoses, exposures, and situations must be reported; who receives the report; what restriction or exclusion process applies; and how return-to-work decisions are made under current requirements. Protect medical privacy and collect only information needed to make the food-safety decision.
Protect handwashing and separation
The hand sink must remain accessible and supplied. It is not storage, a dump sink, a beverage station, or extra counter space. Position tasks so employees can wash at required moments without crossing a hot line or asking another employee to move.
| Risk | Control |
|---|---|
| Raw animal food | Storage hierarchy, containers, tools, work sequence, and cleaning |
| Ready-to-eat food | Protected handling, approved utensils, minimal touch, clean assembly |
| Allergens | Confirmed labels, recipe records, procedures, honest cross-contact communication |
| Chemicals | Labeled, separated storage and correct concentration/testing |
| Dirty utensils | A landing area that does not cross clean or food zones |
| Money and devices | Task separation or handwashing before returning to food work |
Control time and temperature
The DSHS mobile-vendor guide identifies equipment capable of maintaining cold TCS food at 41°F or below and hot TCS food at 135°F or above. Cooking, cooling, reheating, and specialized processes require the current controlling rules and product-specific procedures. Use calibrated thermometers and record corrective action—not only the reading.
A temperature log is useful when it names the product, location, time, reading, instrument, employee, limit, and action. Identical readings entered at closing are not evidence that food was controlled throughout service.
Clean, sanitize, and communicate allergens
Remove food and soil first, then use the approved sanitizing method at the correct concentration or process. Maintain test devices, chemical labels, safety information, and employee training. Air-dry clean items; do not towel-dry food-contact surfaces.
Keep current ingredient labels and recipes for the nine major allergens recognized by FDA, including sesame. Train employees to avoid guessing. When the truck cannot prevent cross-contact, say so clearly. Decline the order when safety cannot be supported.
Sources and verification
Use the current source, effective date, and controlling authority before making an operational decision.
- Texas DSHS Mobile Food Vendor Guide — Mobile-vendor food-safety, equipment, temperature, and inspection requirements.
- FDA Food Code — Model retail-food code and current supplements.
- Texas food laws and rules — Current controlling Texas statutes and administrative rules.