It might be copied worldwide but there is only one true Neapolitan pizza.

Italy has drawn up a series of rules that must be met for a Neapolitan pizza to be worthy of the name.

The regulations are designed to protect and promote the original, traditional Neapolitan pizza.

The proposed new law includes a step-by-step guide to the perfect pizza.

It covers pizza shape, depth, toppings and even the way olive oil must be poured on top.

"Pizza-making is an art, you need passion to make pizza," Alfredo Folliero, of the European Union Traditional Pizza Association said.

"It's all in the dough and the rolling technique which has developed over hundreds of years," he added.

The dough must be kneaded, shaped and coaxed into a perfectly round disc by hand.

"Rolling pins or other mechanical instruments are not permitted," the rules admonish.

Drawn up by the Agriculture Ministry and professional Neapolitan pizza-makers, the guidelines were printed in the Gazzetta Ufficiale, a publication normally reserved for financial and legal notices.

The eight articles and six sub-clauses will form the bible for pizza-makers in Naples - where Italy claims the pizza was born more than 300 years ago - and beyond.

A true Neapolitan pizza must be cooked in a wood-fired oven and the final product must be soft, elastic and easy to fold in two, the guidelines say.

If the law is approved, pizzas that make the grade will be allowed to sport a prestigious STG label.

(Agencies)