Food trucks struggle to stay afloat with gas prices soaring

Published: May. 17, 2022 at 5:59 PM CDT
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BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (WBRC) - High gas prices are creating a struggle for food truck vendors who are now having to rethink their plans to stay afloat.

Co-owner and CEO of 1918 Catering, Jason Brown, said they were already spending a lot of money on gas before prices jumped, but now the high gas prices are really putting a dent in their pockets.

Brown said he’s had to alter his routes to save gas.

He said a typical day for the food truck would start in Fairfield and end in Chelsea making stops along Highway 280, but he said those days are gone.

Brown is limiting stops to one or two a day and trying to stay local as often as possible.

His brother, Jamal, said it costs about $100 a day to gas up the tank to get from place to place, but gas is also needed to run the generator, which costs about $20 a day.

He said the cost of propane has also gone up, which is need to run equipment like the fryer and stove.

They said all of this is impacting their bottom line.

“Right now, we’re seeing bottom lines being affected, you know, a couple hundred dollars a month here. So, those hundreds of dollars that add up in fuel costs relate to employee payroll costs, marketing and advertising costs, and also just discounts that we pass on to our customers,” Brown said.

Brown said the high gas prices are forcing him to raise the price of some menu items and delivery costs, but he said he feels blessed that he still has a great demand from customers.

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