2023-11-21 05:00:00
The largest pizza producer in the world, Italpizza, is moving to Quebec. The Italian giant is opening a first store in Canada in the hope of convincing the entire country that it is possible to combine frozen food and gastronomy to offer quality at a reasonable price.
Italpizza is not a pizzeria. No food is prepared there and only two employees work in one branch. The owner of Italpizza Shop & Eat, the company’s Canadian arm, welcomed The newspaper in its premises in Plaza Laval, in front of a row of freezers.
The administrator, Michel Parnaud, the operations supervisor, Line Bolduc, and the owner of Italpizza Shop & Eat, Andrea Primo Gennari Photo Vincent Desbiens
“It is a concept that requires much less investment in money and time. Selling frozen pizzas helps counter the labor shortage, because we don’t need anyone in the kitchen. It also allows us to keep our prices very low compared to what is done elsewhere,” notes Andrea Primo Gennari.
Upon entering the “pizzathèque”, the customer chooses between four toppings and two types of crust, Neapolitan or Roman. A service employee takes care of heating the buyer’s dish and, in a few minutes, everything is ready to eat on site or at home.
Italpizza’s 5 cheese and Carnivore pizzas are served in less than five minutes. Photo Vincent Desbiens
“We also have delivery agreements coming up with Uber Eats and Doordash,” underlines the man who is at the head of the Quebec food company Walcovit, known for its milk-fed veal sausages on sale at several retailers.
Overseas freshness
All the pizzas that the company will sell in Quebec and Canada are cooked in Modena, Italy, with fresh local products. According to the entrepreneur who arrived in Quebec in 1985, it is this aspect that sets Italpizza apart from low-price competitors found in supermarkets.
“Each pizza dough spends 24 hours proofing to obtain a more airy texture. Once filled, they are cooked in a wood oven as tradition dictates. You get a thick and crispy crust, but very light, like you can find in large pizzerias. Quality food has a price…and it’s $12!”
According to Andrea Primo Gennari, pizza is a timeless dish that is unanimously loved all over the world. It is for this reason that he is convinced of the success that awaits Italpizza in Canada. Photo Vincent Desbiens
The pizzas are then frozen and exported to 57 countries around the world, including Canada now. The company has “no interest” in setting up a factory in Quebec, since it would be impossible to maintain the same freshness by importing large quantities of Italian food.
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