Which Pizza Trend is Better for You?

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We’re on the forefront of one of the best months of the year: October. Why, you ask? It’s National Pizza Month! With that comes a number of trends leading up to the holiday season, and from gluten-free (yes, it’s back!) to cauliflower crusts, pizza makers are looking to the next best thing in better-for-you ‘zas.

Snack Food & Wholesale Bakery’s recent State of the Industry 2021 report notes that pizza can in fact be something that is more nutritious. Key trends, according to 210 Analytics, include:

“Real” ingredients like cheese, for example, and organic ingredients with no artificial contents
Alternative crusts like cauliflower, sweet potato or almond
Smaller portion sizes

Technomic’s Pizza Report found 23% of consumers are wanting gluten-free pizzas and 27% are asking for low-carb pizza offerings. More than one-quarter said they “would eat pizza more often if healthier options were available.” More pizza you say? Even though pizza is one of the top ordered foods at US-based foodservice establishments — a whopping 1.2 billion servings were dolled out in the quarter ending June 2021, up 4% from last year — our interest is more than piqued.

NPD reports that units of plant-based protein meat “analogues and ingredients” shipped to pizza operators increased by 56% in the second quarter of 2021, compared to the same period from last year.

“Plant-based is no longer just a niche player in the foodservice market. It’s a mainstream ingredient that appeals to a broad section of consumers,” Tim Fires, president of NPD’s SupplyTrack service, told Bake Magazine. “It makes perfect sense that a popular food, like pizza, would now offer plant-based options.”

Ready to bake up the perfect plant-based, gluten-free or cauliflower pizza? Don’t forget LloydPans Pizza Pans for the best bake.