How Pizza Hut Japan Found A Unique Way Around Food Inflation

Many of us probably know the stereotype about people who have just returned from studying abroad being insufferable by describing how cultured they are now that they've left the U.S. for the first time. Perhaps you could tune out these hypothetical people. But when they talk about how different American fast food chains are in other countries, it piques our interest. If they traveled to the U.K., they may come back complaining that the McNuggets weren't salty enough because the Brits use about half as much salt as their American counterparts (via Reuters). If they went to Australia, they may have dined at Hungry Jack's, better known as Burger King in the U.S.

They may have discovered how people really eat pizza around the world at a Pizza Hut in Japan, where you can get a pizza topped with tuna or teriyaki chicken & mayo (per The Travel). These flavors and several others are exclusive to Pizza Huts located in the Land of the Rising Sun. Pizza Hut Japan is not only innovative with its toppings, but the chain has just released a new pizza base option that alleviates some of the pressure of inflation (via Sora News 24).

Move over, cauliflower pizza crust. Rice crust has entered the chat. Rice has been a longtime staple in the Japanese diet, but as average income has increased over the years and the population has declined, so has rice consumption (via Japan Insider). Back in 1962, yearly rice consumption amounted to about 261 pounds per person. Fast-forward to 2015, and per capita consumption was down more than 50%, to about 124 pounds. According to Sora News 24, Pizza Hut Japan's new rice crust not only supports local agriculture but is a clever way to avoid the higher price tag on wheat and other grains due to inflation.

These rice pizzas will be available in the "Gohan Pizza Box," which includes three mini pizzas, a side of fries, and two chicken nuggets. There are three different Gohan Pizza Boxes that are tailored to different flavor preferences: the Japanese Style Set, the European Style Set, and the American Style Set. The Japanese box has local fan favorites like Yakiniku Beef Ribs. The European box has Iberico pork and basil and prawn and lobster sauce. The American Style box includes a Pepperoni Lover pizza in the trio. The rice pizzas just went live yesterday and are an affordable great grab-and-go option, costing 1,000 yen or $7.40 (via Sora News 24).