Several years ago, in response to incidents with food trucks around the country, UAB Campus Safety started a food truck inspection program to ensure safe operation on university property.
If you will be bringing a food truck onto UAB’s campus, the guidelines below should be followed.
- Campus Safety must be notified two weeks in advance of an event.
- A safety inspection must be completed by Campus Safety and the food truck must have an annual inspection in date.
- To operate, a food truck must have:
- verification of insurance,
- a copy of Health Department permit, and
- notice of physical location/permission from property owner to be onsite.
- UAB Transportation must be notified to ensure that the designated parking area/setup is appropriate.
- To operate, a food truck must have:
It is important to note that if food trucks are operating in the street, this is under the jurisdiction of the City of Birmingham. Campus Safety does not need to be notified in this situation.
Additional factors to consider that will be part of the Campus Safety inspection:
- setup must be at least 10 feet from the building/facility;
- the setup cannot block sidewalks, ADA ramps and access, fire lanes, streets or traffic flow;
- if there are multiple food trucks, they must be at least 10 feet apart;
- all fire extinguishers should have annual inspection in date;
- all hood suppression systems should have current inspection in date; and
- if the truck is using propane cylinders, they must be certified — that means they should be marked with the month and year the cylinder was manufactured or recertified.
If you have any questions, please reach out to Rob Emmons, director of Campus and Life Safety, at remmons@uab.edu, or Brian Garvick, assistant safety officer and food truck inspection coordinator, at bgarvick@edu.edu.
