creating community through food.
Chef James Cox writes about Portland’s “Domestic Food Service License” on The New Colonist website. The connection between community and small cottage businesses is something very close to our hearts. Portland is helping facilitate this by allowing people to make foods and sell them to the community without having to go through the hurdle of building a licensed and inspected kitchen. When often all the requirements of these professional kitchens can be distilled down into cleanliness and safe food handling practices, and I don’t believe a three compartment sink is a necessity for that.
What does this license mean? To quote chef Cox “Think taco trucks, cookie vendors, and chocolatiers at farmers markets and street fairs, and almost unlimited ethnic street foods sold from (legal) vending carts.” And imagine jams, jellies, and pickles made from ingredients from community gardens. People being able to support themselves making things they love. It is about quality of life for the cooks and those that enjoy their wares. And closer to home… I know a guy who has a passion for making pastries and cakes, but has yet to find a satisfactory outlet.
May we all hope something like this will come to a city near you.
