Our Story
Straight from the Heartland
Our story begins in the fertile Platte River Valley of Nebraska, where fields of golden corn and popcorn stretch for miles. It was here that a popcorn farmer, Norm Krug, decided that he didn't just want to grow high-quality popcorn for his friends and neighbors, he wanted his popcorn to change the world. So, in the fall of 1997, Norm convinced several of the area's best farmers to join him in establishing Preferred Popcorn. All of the "Founding Farmers" had the same vision and goal: to provide high quality, wholesome popcorn with honesty and integrity.
In the first year, the fledgling company garnered only about a dozen customers, but word quickly spread and people both near and far were drawn to the quality and service Preferred Popcorn provided. When customers came to visit, they spent time in cornfields, rode on tractors and combines, toured the manufacturing center and some even climbed a grain bin. They ate dinners with Preferred Popcorn's farmers and learned as much as they could about the science of popcorn production.
Today, Preferred Popcorn celebrates one of the highest customer retention rates in the industry and welcomes popcorn connoisseurs from all over the globe. We still take people on tractor rides and tours – only now those fields might also be in any of the seven states where Preferred Popcorn grows. Now, our customers will find the latest storage and processing technology run by highly qualified teams of experts at each of our locations. And, we are still led by highly experienced farmers who spend much of their days in their fields overseeing the growth and integrity of the product we send around the world.