Virtual Pizza Academy (VPA) is proud to announce a groundbreaking partnership with two of the most respected names in the food industry: Stanislaus Foods, a benchmark in premium tomato products, and Corto Olive Oil, renowned for their cold-extracted, fresh California olive oils. This collaboration marks a major milestone in VPA’s mission to deliver world-class pizza education through accessible, on-demand learning — now enriched by the stories and standards behind the industry’s most trusted ingredients.
In the pizza world, ingredients are technique. While dough-making and baking skill are essential, what goes on the pizza defines flavor, quality, and customer experience. With this new partnership, Virtual Pizza Academy is creating exclusive educational content, demos, and behind-the-scenes insights to help students understand how to choose and use the best tomatoes and olive oils available — and why it matters.
"You can’t fake quality," says VPA co-founder and instructor, Jim Henry. "When students learn the difference between a commodity product and something like Corto or Stanislaus, it transforms how they approach pizza — not just as a craft, but as a business. This partnership helps us show that difference, up close."
Through VPA’s digital classroom, students will gain access to:
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Ingredient deep-dives on tomato processing and olive oil extraction
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Tasting guides to build palate awareness and compare products
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Technique tutorials that highlight how these ingredients perform in real-world cooking
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Professional insights from chefs, pizzerias, and industry veterans who rely on Stanislaus and Corto daily
With Stanislaus’s unwavering commitment to vine-ripened tomatoes and old-world methods, and Corto’s obsession with freshness and harvest-to-mill speed, the partnership reflects a shared value system: do things right, and flavor follows.
For aspiring pizza makers, operators, and culinary pros looking to level up, this collaboration adds a new layer of authenticity and depth to the VPA curriculum — helping students make smarter decisions from the line to the menu.
About Virtual Pizza Academy
Virtual Pizza Academy is an online platform offering high-quality, Live & On-Demand pizza education. With a focus on technique, craft, and real-world application, VPA serves a global audience of professionals, enthusiasts, and entrepreneurs seeking to master many various styles pizza at any level.
About Stanislaus Foods
A family-owned company rooted in Modesto, California, Stanislaus has produced premium tomato products for pizzerias and Italian restaurants since 1942. Known for their integrity and dedication to flavor, they remain a gold standard in the industry.
About Corto Olive Oil
Corto produces fresh, cold-extracted olive oils in California’s Central Valley. With a harvest-to-mill approach and proprietary extraction methods, Corto is a favorite among chefs for its purity, flavor, and traceability.
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