The best pizzaiolo in Latin America teaches you how to make pizza at home in a simple way From Friday dinner to Sunday's gathering with the family, pizza continues to be present in Brazilians' routines in increasingly greater volumes. ? Today, Brazil produces around 2.78 million pizzas per day, equivalent to almost 116 thousand units per hour. In delivery, the appetite is also impressive: in the first half of 2026 alone, 50 million pizza orders were registered on iFood, an average of 195 orders per minute. This strong consumption has driven the opening of new businesses in the country. A survey by the Associação Pizzarias Unidas do Brasil (Apubra) shows that Brazil gained 1,990 pizzerias between January and May this year. This is equivalent to the opening of a new establishment every two hours. The numbers indicate that Brazilians' relationship with pizza remains strong. According to iFood, 62% of orders are made between Friday and Sunday, reinforcing the tradition of associating meals with moments of leisure. Saturday accounts for more than 21% of all weekly demand registered on the platform. ?? Despite this, the way of consuming pizza has changed: if before the choice used to be restricted to a single flavor, today personalization has gained space. Around 80% of pizzas sold on iFood are half and half or customized. The changes also appear in the ranking of favorite flavors. The traditional pepperoni remains at the top of the national preference, but the data indicates important changes in consumers' taste. In an Apubra survey carried out in 2024, mozzarella occupied the second position, followed by Portuguese and margherita. The most recent data from iFood shows a change in this behavior. Check out the most requested flavors in pizzerias in the first half of 2026: ? Pepperoni ? Chicken with creamy cheese ? Margherita ? Mozzarella ? Portuguese The leadership of pepperoni, however, is nothing new. Data previously released by Apubra shows that the flavor appeared in 59% of orders placed in the country in 2024. The closing event of the SP8 Pizza competition will reward the pizzerias chosen by the public. Disclosure The boom in pizzerias According to Apubra, the number of pizzerias opened between January and May this year was 6.1% higher than that recorded in the same period in 2025, when 1,875 establishments were opened. The result continues the performance observed in 2025. That year, Brazil registered the opening of 4,109 new pizzerias, an increase of 6.26% compared to 2024, when 3,867 businesses were opened. Currently, the country has more than 40 thousand pizzerias in operation. São Paulo concentrates 32% of establishments, followed by Minas Gerais, with 8.71%. ? Apubra's survey considers micro-enterprises (ME), small companies (EPP) and companies classified as LTDA, which represent around 89% of the national market. Individual microentrepreneurs (MEIs) were not included in the analysis. In addition to the increase in the number of companies, the association points to signs of maturity in the sector. According to Apubra, there was a reduction in the number of closures, leading the market to the lowest rate of inactive pizzerias in the last decade. The entity assesses that the trend is for this movement to continue, with fewer closures, sustained growth and greater distribution of pizzerias across the national territory, strengthening the professionalization and competitiveness of the sector. For Gustavo Cardamoni, president of Apubra, the performance recorded in the first months of 2026 shows that the advance was not an isolated movement. "The market continues to expand, maintains a consistent pace of opening new businesses and demonstrates that there is still room for entrepreneurship in the pizzeria sector. This behavior reinforces the maturity of the segment and the confidence of entrepreneurs, who continue to invest even in a challenging economic scenario", he said. Although São Paulo continues to be the largest consumer of pizza delivery in Brazil, with a volume of orders almost three times higher than that of Rio de Janeiro, the biggest advances in consumption have been recorded outside the traditionally stronger markets. The North and Northeast regions lead this growth. Amazonas recorded a 31% increase in pizza orders in the first half of 2026, compared to the same period of the previous year. Pará and Ceará appear next, both with an increase of 19%. The states with the highest volume of orders on the platform are: São Paulo Rio de Janeiro Paraná Minas Gerais Santa Catarina Behavior also changes when purchases are made in supermarkets and wholesalers within the app. While in pizzerias the average is one pizza per order, in the Market category consumers tend to purchase two units at a time, in a habit more associated with domestic supply. In this segment, which brings together frozen and semi-ready products, mozzarella leads consumer preference, and more than 40% of orders are placed at lunch time.