PIZZA HUT® RELEASES SECOND ANNUAL PIZZA TRENDS REPORT UNVEILING AMERICA'S LOVE OF PIZZA AND 2025 INDUSTRY FORECASTING

• The U.S. eats the equivalent to 240,000 Olympic sized swimming pools in pizza slices a year
• Sorry New York, the debate of how to eat a slice of pizza has been resolved, nearly half of people say the proper way is "tip first", not folded. 44% of people even say eating pizza with a fork is a food crime
• 28% of people would give up alcohol for a year if they could have free pizza every day
• With a trend of global flavors, 37% of Americans say they'd like to try Mexican-inspired pizza or Greek-inspired pizza (21%)
• Ranch reigns supreme as most popular dipping sauce, and Kentucky is the state that dips pizza the most
• After much debate, boneless wings win out against bone-in wings as the top preference
• 59% agree pizza and wings are the ultimate pairing. Enjoy the pairing at Pizza Hut now in new Stuffed Crust Pizza & Wings Bundle for $19.99

PLANO, Texas, Jan. 9, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- To kick off the New Year, Pizza Hut releases its second annual Pizza Trends Report featuring the latest research on consumer pizza eating habits and an outlook on emerging trends in the industry. From toppings and unique combinations to pizza eating behaviors and consumption, the report offers a comprehensive look at how Americans continue to embrace their love for pizza.

Since 1958, Pizza Hut has been at the forefront of culinary innovation and a leading pizza destination that takes pride in combining traditional culinary craftsmanship while staying on the pulse with innovation catering to the ever-evolving tastes of modern-day pizza lovers. With an expert culinary team sharing a deep understanding of pizza culture and a passion for innovation, Pizza Hut is dedicated to perfecting every aspect of the pizza experience. Pizza Hut and its culinary experts predict 2025 will be a year of more pizza (32% of people predict they'll eat more pizza than they did in 2024!), pizza pairings and combinations, bold and modern flavors, among several other trends explored in their latest report.  

"The Pizza Hut brand is built on a strong heritage of innovating the pizza experience, from the Original Pan^® Pizza introduced in 1983 to Original Stuffed Crust^® in 1995, and innovation continues to be at the core of everything we do," said Rachel Antalek, Pizza Hut's Chief Food Innovation Officer. "We continue to see a growing trend and demand for unique flavors and modern, bold toppings. We are also seeing customers gravitating towards pairings or pizza-centric accoutrements that complement their orders, whether it be dipping sauces or sides like wings."

The Love of Pizza Across the U.S.

• The average person eats 288 slices of pizza per year. That's roughly 480 gallons per person, meaning the nation collectively eats 95,040,000,000 slices of pizza in a year – equivalent to 240,000 Olympic sized swimming pools.
• What's more, this year 32% predict they'll eat more pizza than they did in 2024.
• Kansas leads the way when it comes consumption of pizza slices per month, on average, with Kansas reporting they eat an average of 9.4 slices a month. Next states consuming the most slices are North Dakota (9.9), South Dakota (9.4), West Virginia (9.3) and Wisconsin (9.3).

The Ultimate Pairing: Pizza and Wings

• Bone in or boneless? The new research looked at the age-old chicken wing debate. 46% prefer boneless wings, while 43% prefer bone-in. Twelve percent simply have no preference.
  • Delaware (53%), Maryland (53%) and North Carolina (54%) are the states who vote bone-in while Kansas (64%), Maine (60%) and Montana (62%) prefer boneless.
• Over half of Americans (59%) agree pizza and wings are the ultimate pairing, with 52% believing ordering wings with pizza makes the overall experience better.
• 71% say they order chicken wings with their pizza, at least on occasion. The three states who are most likely to "always" order pizza with wings are California (17%), Delaware (16%) and Missouri (14%).
• When it comes to the specific tastes of the beloved pizza and wing pairing, 45% said they prefer their wings be a different flavor profile than their pizza.
  • Many respondents shared their favorite pizza and wing flavor profiles with combinations ranging from 1. pepperoni pizza with honey wings, 2. veggie pizza with spicy wings, 3. onion and mushroom pizza with sweet and sour wings, 4. meat lover's pizza with Old Bay seasoned wings, and 5. Hawaiian pizza with BBQ wings.

Right now, you can enjoy the fan-favorite pairing with the new Stuffed Crust Pizza & Wings Bundle at Pizza Hut, offering the ultimate combination of flavor and value. Available now through April 7, 2025, the Stuffed Crust Pizza & Wings Bundle includes one large 1-topping Stuffed Crust pizza, 16 Boneless Wings (choice of 2 flavors), and 2 dips priced at a total of $19.99.

To Dip or Not to Dip?

• Dipping sauces are loved by pizza fans to add an extra burst of flavor. Over half (58%) of respondents claim they dip their pizza into sauces, at least on occasion.
• Kentucky is the state that dips their pizza in dipping sauce the most. The other dippiest states include Idaho (28%), Mississippi (27%), New Mexico (27%), Oklahoma (28%) and Tennessee (28%).
• Ranch (38%) reigns supreme as the most popular sauce consumers polled are most likely to dip their pizza into.
• Respondents also said they would likely use garlic sauce (27%), marinara sauce (23%), blue cheese dressing (8%) or buffalo sauce (8%) as preferred dips for their pizza.

Toppings, Crusts & Flavors

• 2025 emerges as another year of bold flavors and modern toppings that push the boundaries of traditional pizza.
• When looking at on-trend and unique pizza toppings, mushrooms (57%) were ranked most popular. Garlic (41%), pineapple (38%), anchovies (8%), pickles (8%), cherries (2%) followed as other unique toppings ranked by pizza lovers.
• The experts at Pizza Hut predict thin crust continues to grow in popularity and consistent with Pizza Hut's 2024 survey findings, thin crust remains the most popular type of pizza crust (29%) followed by stuffed crust (24%) and hand-tossed crust (23%).
• When it comes to eating a stuffed-crust pizza, many shared what stuffing they'd like to try: unique cheeses (47%), meat (34%), garlic (31%), ranch (19%) and jalapeños (18%).
• New York topped the charts as the most popular pizza style again, with 29% claiming New York Style pizza is the best, followed by Chicago Deep Dish (22%), Sicilian Style (8%) and Detroit Style (4%).
• As customers look to experience global flavors, 37% of Americans report that they'd most like to try a Mexican-inspired (37%) or Greek-inspired pizza (21%). They would also like to try French (12%), Korean (11%) and Thai (10%).

Pizza Consumption Habits & Behaviors

• Pizza Hut looked to settle the great debate over how to eat a slice of pizza. Sorry New York, the debate of how to eat a slice of pizza has been resolved, with nearly half of people saying the proper way is "tip first", not folded.
• Plus, 44% of people say eating pizza with a fork is a food crime
• Cold pizza, anyone? Over half (57%) of the survey respondents said they like eating cold pizza as a leftover the next day.
• Consistent with 2024, Friday is the most popular day (43%) to eat pizza. Saturday (23%) and Wednesday (11%) follow as the next most popular days of the week.

Pizza Fun Facts

• Pizza > social media. Eighteen percent of people would give up social media for a year if they could have free pizza every day.
• Others would give up alcohol (28%), coffee (20%), and sweets (14%).
• Many pizza lovers shared which celebrity they would most want to grab a slice of pizza with. At the top was Morgan Freeman (9%). Other celebrities they want to grab a slice with include Taylor Swift (7%), Paul McCartney (7%), Joe Rogan (6%) and George Clooney (5%).

Survey Methodology
This online survey of 5,000 American adults, split evenly by state, was commissioned by Pizza Hut and conducted by market research company Talker Research, in accordance with the Market Research Society's code of conduct. Data was collected from Dec. 19 to Dec. 30, 2024. This survey was overseen by Talker Research, whose team members are members of the Market Research Society (MRS) and the European Society for Opinion and Marketing Research (ESOMAR).

About Pizza Hut^®
Pizza Hut, a subsidiary of Yum! Brands, Inc. (NYSE: YUM), was founded in 1958 in Wichita, Kansas and since then has earned a reputation as a trailblazer in innovation with the creation of icons like Original^® Pan and Original^® Stuffed Crust pizzas. In 1994, Pizza Hut pizza was the very first online food order. Today, Pizza Hut continues leading the way in the digital and technology space with over half of transactions worldwide coming from digital orders. Pizza Hut is committed to providing an easy pizza experience – from order to delivery – and has Hut Rewards^®, the Pizza Hut loyalty program that offers points for every dollar spent on food any way you order. Hut Rewards is open to U.S. residents 18+. See applicable terms at https://hutrewards.pizzahut.com/terms/. A global leader in the pizza category, Pizza Hut operates more than 19,000 restaurants in more than 100 countries. Through its enormous presence, Pizza Hut works to unlock opportunity for its team members and communities around the world.

For more information, visit www.pizzahut.com. You can remain up to date on what's happening at Pizza Hut by following us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, TikTok and subscribing to our YouTube channel.

Press Contact
ALISON BROD MARKETING + COMMUNICATIONS
pizza@abmc-us.com

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SOURCE Pizza Hut