Pizza is one of the most popular foods in the US, and around the world, so it’s no surprise there are pizza shops everywhere. We’ve recently hopped on the pizza bandwagon at Border Brewery & BBQ with our traditional woodfired pizza, and our customers are loving it! If you haven’t been in since we’ve added pizza to our menu, it’s time for another visit!
To fill the time between visiting your favorite pizza shops, here are some fun facts about pizza you probably didn’t know!
Pizza by the Numbers
- 93% of Americans eat pizza at least once a month.
- Worldwide, 5 billion pizzas are sold each year. The US is responsible for about 3 billion of those, averaging out to 46 slices per person per year.
- 15% of people prefer their pizza cold.
- 36% of all pizza orders include pepperoni.
- Pizza accounts for more than 10% of all food service sales in the US.
- Mozzarella makes up 80% of Italian-style cheese production in the US.
- The world’s largest pizza was made in Los Angeles in January 2023. Its surface area was nearly 14,000 square feet.
- Pizza contributes $37 billion to the American economy every year and employs over a million people.
- 36% of people think pizza is an acceptable breakfast food.
Slices of Pizza History
- Pizza-like foods date back to ancient times. Modern pizza as we know it today was born in Naples, Italy, in the late 18th century.
- The Margherita pizza is named after Queen Margherita. She visited Naples in 1889 and fell in love with pizza.
- The first time a computer ordered a pizza was in 1974. Scientists developed a “speaking computer” and tested it by ordering a pepperoni, sausage, ham, and mushroom pizza.
- WWII veterans made pizza popular. Allied troops in Italy enjoyed the local cuisine and brought their love of pizza with them when they returned home.
Pizza Grab Bag
- The most popular days to eat pizza are Super Bowl Sunday, Halloween, the day before Thanksgiving, New Year’s Eve, and New Year’s Day.
- Saturday is America’s favorite day of the week to eat pizza.
- Hawaiian pizza is actually Canadian. The Canadian chef who first made it gave it the tropical name.
- The Museum of Pizza in Philadelphia houses the largest collection of pizza memorabilia in the world.
