If you visit ‘t Gasselterveld and ‘t Nije Hemelriek near Gasselte in the summer months, you can go to the food truck of Siska Kanninga for a snack or drink. She is allowed to park her food truck in the recreation area in June, July and August.
Kanninga will also be involved in the daily cleaning and supervision of the food truck. That was one of the requirements of Staatsbosbeheer to be allowed to operate the food truck. In recent years it has been quite busy in the area in the summer, resulting in clutter and mess. According to Staatsbosbeheer, if an entrepreneur is continuously present to supervise, guarantee safety and keep things tidy, this creates a win-win situation.
An accessible catering facility not only fulfills a wish of many visitors to the swimming lake; Several catering entrepreneurs had also inquired about the possibilities of being allowed to stand at the swimming lake. Staatsbosbeheer offered them the opportunity to register for this. This enabled the forest and nature manager to make a good assessment of an operator that meets their requirements.
According to Staatsbosbeheer, nine catering entrepreneurs had registered to be allowed to stand at the swimming lake. “That ranges from a simple ice cream truck to an extensive kiosk on the beach. We chose Siska Kanninga for Wereldse Smaak because she had the highest total score.”
With that last comment, Staatsbosbeheer refers to three criteria that entrepreneurs had to meet. For example, everyone who registered was asked to contribute to the management costs of the area, to contribute to an attractive recreational environment for residents and to contribute to the regional economy. Kanninga’s concept came out on top.
What Staatsbosbeheer found to be a strong point was the way in which it involves residents and holidaymakers in keeping the beach and the lake clean. “She has several ideas for that that need to be further developed. But one of the examples she came up with is plogging. That is a combination of running and cleaning up litter.”
We are currently working closely with Kanninga to apply for a permit from the municipality of Aa en Hunze. Once that has been completed, she can be on the site from next month. However, she does not receive any guarantee that she can also use her food truck at the swimming pools after the summer. In any case, visitors can get drinks, ice cream and snacks from Kanninga’s food truck. And all with organic and local food. Because that was also one of the reasons why she was chosen, says Staatsbosbeheer.
The permit for the food truck is temporary, because there are plans to build a new catering pavilion near ‘t Gasselterveld in due course. The operator of this will be responsible for keeping the beach clean, in exchange for the income from the recently introduced paid parking. Staatsbosbeheer would prefer to get rid of both tasks.