Does Wisconsin love frozen pizza? This viral video of a grocery store's massive selection proves we do
How do you tell everyone on Twitter you're in Wisconsin without saying you're in Wisconsin? Video of Lambeau Field or cheese curds would work.
Add a grocery store's massive frozen pizza section to the list of options.
Less than 24 hours after uploading to Twitter, a video tour of a frozen pizza section in a Wisconsin grocery store got retweeted thousands of times and garnered more than 38K likes.
The video from Michael Bradley in Milwaukee shows a multitude of frozen pizzas as he weaves through what appears to be a Woodman's frozen foods section. It takes a full minute to capture the enormity of choice — complete with the sounds of store music and a wobble grocery cart wheel clanking over the tile floor.
Bradley simply writes: "A frozen pizza section in Wisconsin."
A frozen pizza section in Wisconsin. pic.twitter.com/YDMOL4b7o3
— Michael Bradley (@MikeBradleyMKE) October 13, 2022
That set off a string of replies. More than 2,300 (and counting) that include "I don't understand, what's the problem?" and "Are you saying they don't have frozen pizza sections like that everywhere?"
I don't understand, what's the problem?
— Justice for Keston (11-11) (@tenordominguez) October 13, 2022
Are you saying they don't have frozen pizza sections like that everywhere?
— Joe O (@JoeFromStCloud) October 13, 2022
It doesn't sound like they have frozen pizza sections like this in Nevada. At least according to one Wisconsinite who wrote that when she lived in Nevada "I was seriously upset that there were only six brands of frozen pizza and not even all the varieties of those flavors. If you want to freak out a Wisconsinite, tell them there's only three options of Tombstone."
I'm not going to lie, when I moved to Nevada, I was seriously upset that there were only six brands of frozen pizza and not even all the varieties of those flavors.
If you want to freak out a Wisconsinite, tell them there's only three options of Tombstone.— Wendy Wimmer (@wendywimmer) October 13, 2022
Bradley comments that he once stood in a cold storage warehouse among 21 million pizzas describing the experience as "mystical."
MORE: Great cheese and big appetites make Wisconsin a frozen pizza leader
I had a client that was a major private label pizza manufacturer. They had 21 million pizzas in their cold storage warehouse in beaver dam wisconsin.
There's something mystical about standing in possibly the largest concentration of pizza in the world.— Michael Bradley (@MikeBradleyMKE) October 13, 2022
If you're wondering "what the heck is going on out here" when it comes to frozen pizza in Wisconsin, I dove into that question in 2019.
Feel free to check out the entire story, but I'll give you a summary version here:
Wisconsinites eat more frozen pizza per capita than anyone else.
Wisconsin makes many of the top selling frozen pizza brands like DiGiorono, Tombstone, Jack's, Brew Pub Lotzza Motzza Pizza, Orv’s, Roma and Palermo's.
Cheese. Wisconsin makes lots of cheese in case you didn't know. Mozzarella is the most made cheese in the state.
Meats. This might be overlooked but the quality of meat producers in the state helps.
A strong history of manufacturing.
Since I wrote that article, Wisconsin continues to be a big player on the frozen pizza scene. Palermo's made frozen versions of Surfer Boy Pizza pies as seen on the latest season of Netflix's popular streaming series "Stranger Things."
MORE: 'Stranger Things'-inspired pizzas made in Milwaukee vie for 'Coolest Thing Made in Wisconsin' title
The Wisconsin Timber Rattlers held a frozen pizza throwdown contest and Lambeau Field named Pothole Pizzas from Wisconsin-based Kwik Trip as its official frozen pizza.
MORE: Who makes Wisconsin's best frozen pizza? Timber Rattlers event will settle the debate
So, yeah, the love is still strong here.
"Frozen pizzas are one of Wisconsin's unsung culinary delights," replied one Twitter user.
Frozen pizzas are one of Wisconsin’s unsung culinary delights. My favorite was Orv’s.
— Adriane Hoff (@hoffbeatenpath) October 13, 2022
While reporting about the roots of Wisconsin's affinity for foods like sausage, cheese curds, brandy and the Friday fish fry, I've noticed a common trait in the Badger State — loyalty.
Or as Milwaukee author Jeannette Hurt who busted the origin myth of how Wisconsin became the brandy drinking capital of the world said: "Once we find something we like, we stick with it."
Don't expect that frozen pizza section to shrink anytime soon.
Contact Daniel Higgins dphiggin@gannett.com. Follow @HigginsEats on Twitter and Instagram and like on Facebook.
This article originally appeared on Green Bay Press-Gazette: Wisconsin frozen pizza video goes viral on Twitter