Pizza Hut makes world record pizza delivery to summit of Mt Kilimanjaro

What do you do when you're suddenly hit by a voracious craving for pepperoni pizza after having trekked to the top of one of the world's highest mountains? You call Pizza Hut. The company made history on Sunday (8 May) after delivering a pizza to the top of Mt Kilimanjaro.

The delivery secured Pizza Hut a place in the Guinness World Record for the highest altitude pizza delivery made on land, having already conquered space delivery for pizza in 2001. The delivery to Mt Kilimanjaro was made in celebration of Pizza Hut opening a new outlet in Tanzania — the 100th country to contain a Pizza Hut branch.

Pizza Hut Africa general manager Randall Blackford, who was present at Mt Kilimanjaro to receive delivery of the pizza, told CNN: "Nothing tasted as good as a pizza after hiking through the night."

The only hitch in the delivery was that the 30-minute delivery guarantee was blown to smithereens. Pizza Hut began its trek to the mountain on 5 May, finally reaching the summit of Kilimanjaro at 19,341ft, on 8 May. The pepperoni pizza (with extra cheese) was packed into a specially designed, well-insulated and battery powered backpack before being transported by airplane, car and a relay of professional hiker guides.

The pizza was made in the newly established Pizza Hut restaurant in Dar es Salaam, from where it was flown to the Kilimanjaro International Airport. The pizza was then delivered to the trailhead in Mount Kilimanjaro National Park by car, from where, five professional guides carried the pizza to the base camp, located at a height of 16,000ft. They were met by Blackford and two other Pizza Hut employees, who then began their final ascent to the ice-capped mountains at midnight.

Pizza Hut International president Milind Pant said: "In true Pizza Hut fashion, we celebrated the occasion in a big way. We've delivered to the US capitol, to Outer Space and now it was time to set new heights in Tanzania, our 100<sup>th country."