(WXYZ) — As inflation continues to cause families and businesses to dig deeper in their pockets, food truck operators who cover their own gas are trying their best to keep their business rolling down the road.
The average price of gas in metro Detroit is still more than $5 per gallon, well above the national average.
The customer will be paying more for food as these costs continue to go up, and they might be getting a little smaller portion sizes.
Andre Williams, the owner of Andre's Authentic Louisiana Foods, closed his restaurant recently and instead bought a food truck.
"We decided to do the food truck, but at the same time we built the food truck into a restaurant," he said.
With all of the kitchen equipment on the truck, it's heavy and it guzzles gas. Combine that with rising food costs and it's starting to impact profits. That means shortening the distance while still spending 1/3 more on fuel.
"It's astronomical. The prices have just been outrageous. It's almost double the cost," he said.
Williams said he tries to limit the distance, that way they don't drive as far and save money. They also let customers know that if they live farther away, they might get charged more.
According to the new Labor Department data, gas is up almost 50% more than this time last year, and food away from home is up nearly 8%.
Chef Greg Collier, the owner of The House of Barbecue in Clawson, pulls a BBQ trailer behind his car, sending his profits up in smoke.
Every day, he said he's spending $5.80 to $6.11 for gas, which works out to about $140 every two days.
That's not all. The price of food is also a problem.
"It's actually making me take food that's already up from inflation to almost twice the amount from what I was charging last year," Collier said.
With food prices and gas prices going that high, Collier has to lighten the portion of the food so he doesn't raise the price.
"We were offering up nice portions. I keep the price the same, but I give up less portions, and the customers, when I explain it to them, a lot of them understand," Collier said.
For the men and women who are following their passion, it's becoming harder for them to keep going because of the rising prices.
Both Andre and Chef Collier hope the high prices come down soon.
