Paul Keeris, owner of Dutchlicious catering, has been feeding truckers out of his vintage Airstream since the pandemic began.Brendan McAleer/The Globe and Mail
Paul Keeris, owner of Dutchlicious catering, leans back and waits for the reaction, a twinkle in his eye. I bite down and my eyebrows go up. The frikandel speciaal I’ve just been served is a traditional Dutch treat, a sausage split lengthwise and served with onions and curry ketchup. It’s absolutely delicious, and explains the lineup quickly forming here at a cardlock truck stop just off the Trans-Canada highway.
“They can sleep here,” Keeris says, pointing to the vast expanse of the back lot, “Get a good breakfast, then get back on the road. It's been all go-go-go, roll-in, rollout. We open about 6:45 in the morning, and go until six.”
For the past three weeks, Keeris has been working out of his vintage Airstream RV, feeding an overlooked link in the supply chain – the truck drivers keeping stores stocked with food and essential supplies. When the pandemic hit, restaurants and rest areas closed, and people were encouraged to stay home. Trucks, however, needed to stay out on the roads.
“You can't just go through a drive-through with a 53-foot trailer,” says Dave Earle of the B.C. Trucking Association. “Also, suddenly all these restrooms were closed.”
While B.C.'s Ministry of Transport mobilized to get rest area facilities set up at highway checkpoints, Earle got to work on feeding truckers. He credits Greg Munden of Munden Ventures in Kamloops, B.C., a forestry transportation company, with doing much of the work in reaching out to sponsors and drafting in a web developer.
Earle and Munden had the straightforward, yet practical solution of contacting food trucks to set up at places truckers ordinarily stop, such as refuelling stations and weigh scale checkpoints. The idea was to find a way to get meals to truckers, paid for by sponsorships and donations.
On any regular day, food trucks are charged for operating at truck stops but due to COVID pandemic provincial authorities eased these restrictions.Brendan McAleer/The Globe and Mail
Ordinarily, food trucks are charged for operating at truck stops, and there are strict rules about where they can set up. Provincial authorities eased these restrictions, and removed operating fees. Truckers stopping to refuel their rigs now had an opportunity to refuel themselves as well. The first food trucks went into place on March 30th in Chilliwack and Kamloops. Others soon reached out to Earle and Munden, and there is now a chain of them stretching across western Canada.
Truckers stopping at the Zopkios, B.C. brake check area, north of the city of Hope, or at the weigh scale in Kamloops, now have the option of getting a bite to eat. There are taco trucks, burger joints and every other type of food truck that you’d ordinarily find at something like a music festival. With large gatherings currently forbidden, it has also a great way for small businesses to stay afloat, thanks to funds from corporate and private sponsors.
Commercial restaurants were also quick to come on board. Chains like A&W and Tim Horton’s are set up for delivery. In the case of McDonald’s, a truck driver need only mention the code “Spot 99,” upon ordering, and their meal will be run out to the truck curbside.
The B.C. Trucking association has also developed a website that maps out traditional services such as truck repair and tire suppliers, along with truck-friendly hotels and restaurants, and available restroom facilities.
“The vast majority of meals served from our food trucks have been paid for by our sponsors,” Earle says. “What I find really inspiring are the donations from private citizens. We're seeing people donating $100 for meals for truckers – one donor put in $2500, which is just amazing.”
Earle says that the feedback from the truckers themselves is deeply appreciative.
“Truckers have gone from being the invisible backbone of our supply chain, to having their work recognized,” Earle says.
As part of that recognition, the Meals For Truckers website also features a section that highlights individual truckers. Kris Gunderson, a flat deck driver from Kamloops, is noted as a volunteer and fundraiser for his community cancer centre. Others are praised for logging millions of kilometres without incident, problem-solving with dispatch, simply being a hard-working father and husband.
“We plan to keep the lights on after all this is over,” Earle says of the site, “It's just been a great conduit to make connections.”
There has also been interest in expanding the scope of the project, from trucking associations and government in eastern Canada. The website could grow to include coverage of all provinces, making it easier for truckers across all of Canada to find welcome spots to rest and eat.
In the meantime, small caterers like Paul Keeris will keep serving up meals to truck drivers with a grin and a quip. The trucks will keep rolling. People will be full. We’ll get through this together.
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