World Day

World pizza day, all the faces of the success (also economic) of a made in Italy icon

From pizzerias to frozen food: here's how consumption is changing and how pizza is becoming a resource for food chains

by Manuela Soressi

17 January 2026

4' min read

Translated by AI

Versione italiana

Key points

15 billion in pizzerias
Frozen or home-made
Ambassador of Italian Ingredients
Finance Queens

4' min read

Translated by AI

Versione italiana

All over the world it is celebrated on 17 January on World Pizza Day, the world day dedicated to this iconic dish, which originated in Italy but has now become global. In Italy, however, the ritual of pizza is celebrated every day. High or low, round or by the slice, white or red, soft or crispy, there are 2.2 million pizzas served daily in out-of-home channels (Circana Crest data) for aper capita annual consumption of 7.8 kg, estimates the Centre for Training and Research on Consumption (Crc). The passion for margherita and capricciose fuels a circuit of 50 thousand pizzerias with 300 thousand employees and 15 billion euro turnover, declares Fipe-Confcommercio.

15 billion in pizzeria

Pizza is an industry that is holding its own even in the face of recent household spending cuts. Households have decreased outgoings and reduced their receipts, but pizza has not been given up. "Pizza has held up better than other out-of-home sectors," says Luciano Sbraga, deputy general manager of Fipe-Confcommercio. Confirmation comes from Circana Crest data.

"In the year that ended last September,volumes remained substantially stable and so pizza remains one of the most consumed products in the out-of-home segment, being present in 12.7% of the occasions when people frequent public places," comments Matteo Figura, executive director foodservice Italy at Circana.

Frozen or home-made

In addition to those ordered in pizzerias, take-away and delivery, there are the 71 thousand tonnes of frozen pizzas bought in one year in the large-scale retail trade, of which Italians have increased their purchases even in 2025, say Iias data, touching 488 million euro of expenditure (almost 5% more in volume in the first part of the year).

And then there is that 40% of families that, according to a Coldiretti/ Ixè survey, make their own pizza at home, buying individual ingredients. Starting with ready mixes and bases, which represent 7% of the expenditure destined in 2024 for the purchase of cereal derivatives in large-scale distribution (source: Ismea/Niq). To give an idea of the market, this is twice as much as is set aside for the purchase of rice (3%). It is not surprising, therefore, that the big names in frozen pizza have their eyes on this lively segment, as has Italpizza (430 million euro revenue 2025) which has just launched its fresh bases in large-scale distribution.

After all, the ability to innovate is fundamental in a market that must always keep pace with emerging trends in food. Here, then, is the debut of the air fryer pizza by Roncadin, the relaunch of the mini Buitoni formats as a tasty and quick snack, the expansion of the pinsa offer (which is growing in double figures) and the limited edition for the twentieth anniversary of the Pizza Ristorante brand, with its 16 million pizzas sold in one year in Italy.

Ambassador for Italian ingredients

Pizza is therefore increasingly a pillar of the national food economy as a powerful global driver of Made in Italy. Especially in countries such as France, Austria and Switzerland, where a third of citizens consider it the icon of Italian cuisine, according to a recent report by Roberta Garibaldi, president of the Italian Food and Wine Tourism Association (Aite).

Even online, pizza represents the first and most immediate point of contact with the Italian spirit as 'pizzeria' is the most searched term on the web in the US, UK, Germany, France and Spain, with over 4 million monthly searches, reveals Real Italian Restaurants (a digital platform that certifies the authenticity of Italian restaurants abroad).

Globally, the pizza market exceeds $150 billion and is projected to exceed $409 billion by 3032, with expected growth at a compound annual rate (CAGR) of 5.4%, estimates Fortune Business Inside. The lion's share is in the US, with more than 38% of the business, but Italy also plays an important role, as it concentrates 52.3% of the amount of pizza consumed away from home in the five major European markets surveyed by Circana Crest.

"Intermediate consumption accounts for about 40% of the turnover of pizzerias in Italy," emphasises Sbraga, "We are talking about at least six billion in allied industries, between suppliers of services and ingredients. And if up to now this has been fertile ground for producers of flour, dairy products and tomato preserves - Anicav right on the occasion of Pizza Day points out that the value of the 200 million kg of red preserves used in Italian pizzerias is over 250 million - now other food sectors have also started to invest in the field. These include brands of anchovies and cured meats (including fine ones such as culatello), which have seen gourmet pizza as an effective vehicle for promoting their brand.

Chain queens of finance

The driving force is the expansion of the Italian pizzeria chains, which have been growing for some years now thanks to their ability to combine artisanal quality and Italian style with the solidity of an Anglo-Saxon business model. It is a fast-moving sector that is attracting investors: 21% of all M&A transactions recorded in Italy in the foodservice sector between the end of Covid and mid-2025 concerned pizzerias, reads the Foodservice market monitor by Deloitte.

Following the entry of Equinox into the capital of Pizzium, of Alto Partner into that of Fradiavolo and of Spoon Brands into that of RossoPomodoro, Alice, the leader in pizza al taglio, with over 220 outlets, is expected to change hands in the coming months.