Street Food

Background of the Study

Street food is ready-to-eat food or drink sold in a street or other public places, such as a market or fair, by a vendor, often from a portable stall. Most street foods are classed as both finger food and fast food, and are cheaper on average than restaurant meals. According to a 2007 study from the Food and Agriculture Organization, 2.5 billion people eat street food every day.

In the Philippines it is easy to prepare and eaten and consequently have become the staples of street vendors. Some of the foods are sold already prepared while others are cooked on the spot. Street foods are often seen as dirty, but this is only with unlicensed vendors. While most street foods are not particularly nutritious, they are convenient, fast and cheap.

Street foods often reflect traditional local cultures and exist in an endless variety. There is much diversity in the raw materials as well as in the preparation of street food beverages, snacks and meals. Vendors' stalls are usually located outdoors or under a roof which is easily accessible from the street. They have low-cost seating facilities which are sometimes rudimentary. Their marketing success depends exclusively on location and word-of-mouth promotion. Street food businesses are usually owned and operated by individuals or families but benefits from their trade extend throughout the local economy. For instance, vendors buy their fresh food locally, thus linking their enterprises directly with small-scale farms and market gardens.

The term "street foods" describes a wide range of ready-to-eat foods and beverages sold and sometimes prepared in public places, notably streets. Like fast foods, the final preparation of street foods occurs when the customer orders the meal which can be consumed where it is purchased or taken away.

Statement of the Problem

The purpose of this study is to know what street foods is, to know the factors why Filipino’s love eating street foods, who among the...