VANCOUVER (NEWS1130) – The head of the BC Restaurant and Foodservices Association wants the city of Vancouver to stop issuing additional food cart licences.

Ian Tostenson says it’s time to review how the food carts are impacting nearby restaurants.

He stresses that while the association endorses food carts, they’ve got an unfair competitive advantage over restaurants.

“The biggest problem is the disparity in costs. A small, unlicenced restaurant in downtown Vancouver can pay upwards of $35,000 in property tax, and the food cart is paying $1,200 for a licencing fee,” he points out.

“There is a restaurant in Vancouver that pays as much everyday in property tax as the licencing fee that a food cart pays. You do the math on that. It’s  $360,000 a year for one restaurant.”

Plus, he says there is evidence that even food cart vendors themselves are getting desperate for business.

He’s not opposed to more food carts on city streets, but says the city should do an assessment on the impact more licences would have on existing food carts and on restaurants.

The city is poised to hand out another 30 food cart licences over the next two years.