Mobile Food Services NAICS 722330

        Mobile Food Services

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Industry Summary

The 10,100 mobile food service operators in the US use food trucks and carts to sell prepared meals, snacks and beverages for immediate consumption to walk-up customers. Mobile food services also contract with individuals and businesses to cater food at events, such as parties, corporate gatherings, and festivals.

Economic Sensitivity

Food trucks that catered to construction sites and industrial parks were hit hard during the Great Recession when construction and manufacturing declined and workers were laid off.

Permit Restrictions

Food trucks are typically permitted and inspected by the city in which they operate, with regulations varying significantly from city to city.


Recent Developments

May 14, 2025 - Carbon Monoxide Poisoning
  • While food trucks typically use propane tanks to fuel their cooking equipment, they may also rely on portable generators to provide temporary power for lighting, refrigeration, point-of-sale systems, Wi-Fi, and more, according to Catersource. To reduce noise, food trucks may use generator sheds alongside their trucks – an unsafe and dangerous practice, according to the Portable Generator Manufacturers’ Association (PGMA), which does not recommend their use. The Consumer Product Safety Commission advises never to use generator sheds because they can concentrate deadly carbon monoxide (CO) gas. Symptoms of CO poisoning include headache, dizziness, nausea, fatigue, and disorientation. The PGMA also encourages the purchase and use of portable generators that meet ANSI/PGMA G300-2018 or later safety standard requirements, which include built-in CO shut-off systems to protect against dangerous carbon monoxide levels. Food trucks should also have a secondary CO detector inside for added protection.
  • Restaurants added a net 16,600 jobs in April, according to preliminary data from US Bureau of Labor Statistics. The job gains came despite rising uncertainty that have kept consumers from visiting restaurants as frequently. (In April, industry bellwether McDonald’s reported a 3.6% year-over-year decline in first quarter same-store sales, citing reduced spending by low-income consumers.) April marked the second straight month for restaurant job gains, following about 30,000 new jobs added in March, and a rebound from a job loss of 28,300 in February and 27,000 in January — the weakest two-month period for the industry in more than four years, according to the National Restaurant Association. Limited-service restaurants continue to post the strongest job growth, led by coffee and snack concepts, up more than 20% versus March 2020. Quick-service and fast-casual concepts are about 2.4% above pre-pandemic readings.
  • Mobile Cuisine polled over 500 food truck and concession vendors to ask what they consider an acceptable wait time for their customers. How long is too long to wait for a food truck meal? While acceptable wait times varied, the survey showed patrons are more patient than might be expected. While about a quarter of those surveyed (26%) said nothing less than 5 minutes was acceptable, the sweet spot was 5-8 minutes with 41% of respondents in agreement. Of those polled 13% said 8-10 minutes was acceptable, while 9% agreed on 10-15 minutes. Surprisingly, 11% said more than 15 minutes was an OK time to wait for orders. To make longer waits pass more quickly, Mobile Cuisine suggests using beepers or text messages to notify customers when their orders are ready, allowing them to step away from the line.
  • Food carts in New York City are feeling the pain of “egg-flation,” The New York Post reports. Maria Chuqui, a cook at the Mexican Food and Breakfast cart in upper Manhattan, said that a box of roughly 240 eggs that cost $90 two months ago now costs $217. "I have never paid so much for eggs," Chuqui told the Post, adding "People don't want to pay more for eggs, but I will have to raise prices soon. I sell an egg and cheese for $4 and an egg, bacon and cheese for $5. I will have to raise prices by $1." Inflation, labor shortages, and bird flu are to blame. The average price of a dozen grade-A eggs hit $4.95 nationally in January, exceeding the previous record of $4.82 reached in January 2023, and nearly twice what a dozen eggs cost a year earlier, according to BLS data.

Industry Revenue

Mobile Food Services


Industry Structure

Industry size & Structure

A typical mobile food service firm operates out of a single location, employs 2-3 workers, and generates over $350,000 annually.

    • The mobile food service industry comprises about 10,100 companies, which employ about 27,000 workers and generate about $3.5 billion annually.
    • The industry is highly fragmented with the 50 largest firms accounting for less than 15% of industry revenue.
    • Most companies are small, independent operators - about 83% employ less than 5 workers.
    • Immigrants own 30% of America’s food truck businesses, which frequently represent the first step toward launching a restaurant, according to the Bush Institute-SMU Economic Growth Initiative.
    • Cities with large numbers of food trucks include Los Angeles, Washington DC, San Francisco, Houston, and Miami.
    • Customer industries include individual consumers, event organizers, and businesses seeking mobile catering.

                                Industry Forecast

                                Industry Forecast
                                Mobile Food Services Industry Growth
                                Source: Vertical IQ and Inforum

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