CHARLESTON, W.Va. — No “nays” were heard during a Friday vote from members of the state House Health and Human Resources Committee advancing a resolution making the pepperoni roll the official state food of West Virginia to the House floor.
Before the vote on House Concurrent Resolution 34, lawmakers were told more than 46 other states have some sort of official state food.
No other state, though, lays claim to the pepperoni roll which was first created in Fairmont in 1927 to feed coal miners and families.
“Today, the humble pepperoni roll is ubiquitous around the Mountain State and may be found in restaurants, bakeries, convenience stores and family kitchens,” the text of resolution read.
“Eaten cold or hot, this simple food continues to sustain West Virginians from every walk of life, coal miners, artists, business people and students.”
During a brief discussion on the resolution, delegates had some fun.
For example, Delegate Mick Bates (D-Raleigh, 30) asked: “Does this resolution address the controversy with regard to sticks or slices (of pepperoni)?”
“It does not,” was the answer.
Delegate Dana Ferrell (R-Kanawha, 39) talked about pepperoni roll day in school cafeterias.
“You can smell those things. By second period, you can get a whiff of them and then the line is usually out into the hallway for students to get a pepperoni roll,” he said.
Friday marked the end of consideration of House bills in the House Health and Human Resources Committee.
For the rest of the 2021 Regular Legislative Session, committee members will be focusing on Senate bills.
The session ends on Apr. 10.