Pepperoni topping gets scarce amid production snags, high demand

America’s most beloved pizza topping is getting ever-more expensive to obtain amid production snags at meat plants and high demand for pizza.

Small pizza shops across the US are reporting higher prices and tight supply for their usual pepperoni orders. At Charlie’s Pizza House in Yankton, South Dakota, manager Nick Johnson has seen prices steadily increase from $2.87 a pound in January 2019 to $4.12 now. At New York City’s Emily, chef and co-owner Matthew Hyland is paying $6 a pound, up from $4 earlier.

Brandon King, who owns R-Pizza in Vermillion, South Dakota, said availability issues forced him to change