MULTNOMAH COUNTY, Ore. (KPTV) – The Multnomah County Health Department is urging the public to only purchase food from licensed food vendors and restaurants because there are people selling food without a license, which can pose a risk for foodborne illness.

Vendors operating without licenses or permits are not subject to health inspections, which can raise serious public health and safety concerns.

Some of these unlicensed food trucks lack proper food handling equipment, handwashing facilities, clean water, and refrigeration. They also pose a fire hazard due to the fuels they use, which can pose a risk for food-borne illness.

“We’re asking people to support their local licensed food vendors this weekend,” said Jeff Martin, interim director of environmental health. “This is how we protect our thriving food truck industry and Portland’s public health. Our focus is on helping small businesses succeed.”

Since the summer of 2023, the health department says it has been responding to an increase in unlicensed, makeshift red handcarts across the city selling hot dogs near venues and bars, often on sidewalks or in the middle of closed streets.

Many of the cart vendors are proven to be transported from Portland to other areas.

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“We cannot tolerate people coming in from outside, ignoring county regulations and selling unsafe food that negatively impacts public health and the livelihoods of licensed food businesses,” Martin said.

Since the summer of 2023, the health department has shut down four delivery trucks with out-of-state license plates that dropped off vendors and their carts near Portland venues.

Although the health department marked six stalls as unlicensed, the vendors covered up the stickers, misled customers and continued to sell food.

The health department has reportedly made numerous attempts to contact the stall owners, particularly by speaking with inspectors about the necessary business licenses and how to obtain them, including providing translations and bringing in inspectors who speak the traders’ native language.

Health officials in Washington and California have reported nearly identical problems with unlicensed hot dog outlets.

“There is a legal way to operate a mobile hot dog stand: you have to get a temporary license from the health department,” Martin said. “We have tried to work with these unlicensed vendors, but they have been unwilling to follow our instructions, which is detrimental to both the licensed food vendors and the public.”

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