Hong Kong Needs More Dai Pai Dongs, Not Food Trucks

In his budget address last week, Finance Secretary John Tsang Chun-wah announced he wants to bring food trucks to Hong Kong after watching the movie Chief and thinking it is a good way to help people become more entrepreneurial, but these types of eateries already exist. Hong Kong doesn’t need food trucks. It needs more Dai Pai Dongs or smaller food stalls.

Our city has an old and rich street-food culture. Just after the Second World War, the government saw issuing licenses for open-air cooked food stalls as a way to help poorer people earn money and foster an entrepreneurial spirit among Hong Kongers. In 1974, the number of Dai Pai Dongs and food stalls reached 50,000 – and Hong Kong was firmly established as one of the world capitals of street food.

The government stopped issuing cooked food licences in 1974 due to concerns about hygiene and street congestion caused by the space these food stalls occupy. Some of those food stall owners used the money they earned to open restaurants. Others were moved into the cooked-food areas above wet markets, and some open food stalls remained, legally or illegally. Today there are only 25 legal open food stalls left, according to the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department. Soon there will be none as the licenses will disappear when the owners retire.

The city should consider ways to grant poor people food stall licenses if they want them. With rents skyrocketing and showing no sign of slowing, dai pai dongs not only help budding entrepreneurs but also benefit the city with their inexpensive food. Hong Kongers looking for a cheap meal have fewer and fewer options.

The food truck idea will cost too much and won't attract ordinary people to the business. Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development Gregory So Kam-leung estimates the start-up cost for these food trucks to be HK$500,000.

These food trucks will not move and will only serve “gourmet food.” Chan Kong-chiu, a street seller or hawker, told the SCMP, “I think this will just end up helping the chain restaurants or big companies as a marketing ploy,” since the larger companies can afford to set it up.

The Food and Hygiene Department should explore ways to allow more open cooked food stalls in the city to ensure food safety. They need to hire more inspectors to help reduce license costs and ensure food safety. Places like Thailand, Korea, or Japan have vibrant street food cultures and should be looked to for how they regulate and allow street food.

Street vendors should be required to have the agreement of residents surrounding the area as a condition of the permit. The permission could be given in the form of a petition with contact details to be verified. The department should always review its own regulations and rules governing cooked food to find ways to help those who want to open a business.

Allowing food trucks is a great way to help established restaurants. Allowing more Dai Pai Dongs and cooked food stalls is a great way to help people.