Popped Just for You--From a Machine
Americans love popcorn, enough to make it the No. 4 U.S. snack food. But even the most devoted aficionados must resort to microwaveable or pre-popped kernels when at work or on the go.
A small Whittier-based company is hoping to change that by building on a nascent trend that is putting hot, freshly made food into the hands of hungry, time-starved Americans who don’t mind grabbing a bite out of a machine.
The $50-billion U.S. snack food industry has grown in recent years because of a consumer push to buy quick-and-easy, on-the-go foods that also are tasty and fresh. To that end, Pop N Go Inc., a specialty food equipment maker, has designed an automated food dispenser that churns out single servings of fresh popcorn.
Similar to automated coffee dispensers, Pop N Go machines fill 42-oz. tubs with hot, plain or buttered popcorn. A clear plexiglass screen lets the buyer watch the 90-second popping process.
Although other hot-food vending machines are on the market, experts say consumers have been slow to accept them. But Pop N Go’s moderate price--its popcorn dispensers retail at $3,500 apiece--and popular ingredient could help ease Americans into the world of made-to-order, hot machine food, said Jackie Clark, director of communications for the National Automatic Merchandising Assn.
“Machines offering hot snack foods haven’t been as quick to take off,” Clark said. “But it’s an untapped niche that is just sitting there.”
So far only 700 Pop N Go machines are in use at airports, military bases, bowling alleys and shopping malls across the U.S. But company officials say 1,000 to 2,000 more machines will be in additional venues, including theaters, workplace break rooms and grocery stores, in the next year, although they weren’t more specific. They say prototype machines for other hot snack foods, particularly freshly roasted almonds, cashews and peanuts, are in the works.
“We want to grab people who are free to make an impulse purchase,” said Pop N Go Chief Executive Mel Wyman, who founded the company in 1996. “How many times have you been hungry for something hot, salty and quick? For years, that wasn’t an option. If you wanted fresh popcorn, you either had to make it yourself or go to an amusement park.”
Wyman said vendors who use “kettle poppers,” or machines that make popcorn in large batches, can’t guarantee that it is fresh. “Who knows how long the popcorn has been sitting there,” he said.
Pop N Go’s popularity will depend on consumers’ acceptance of the machine. Price probably won’t be the problem--a tub typically costs about $1. Wyman said the company faces the bigger challenge of moving consumers beyond Cracker Jack bags and microwave popcorn packages, which have established themselves as convenient alternatives to freshly popped corn.
Pop N Go President Jack Freedman, who took over the reins of the business earlier this month, has been brainstorming ways to pique interest in the machines. The company plans to soon make available assorted flavors, ranging from caramel to chocolate to jalapeno.
Freedman also said flat video screens running continuous, 15-second commercials for other food and beverage companies will be added to the top of the Pop N Go machines. Marino’s Italian Ices inked a deal with Pop N Go earlier this month.
According to snack experts, Pop N Go machines could break open the popcorn market and bolster its popularity as one of the nation’s favorite snack foods, said Ann Wilkes, vice president of communications for the Snack Food Assn.
Popcorn already makes up a huge part of the snack food market, with sales for microwaveable selections at $1.25 billion and ready-to-eat brands raking in about $500 million. That puts popcorn behind potato chips, tortilla chips and nuts as the most popular snacks.
But in vending machines, popcorn sales have been stagnant. Although packages of unpopped popcorn have been sold in traditional vending machines for decades, a conveniently located microwave is a requirement before consuming. Still, unpopped packages sold in vending machines account for 2% of all vending machine sales, according to Automatic Merchandiser, a trade magazine.
Wilkes said the machines making fresh popcorn could squeeze other snack food rivals. “Until now, consumers couldn’t buy fresh popcorn,” she said. “This expands the market completely.”
That’s good news for Pop N Go officials, who figure the snack food’s popularity could give the company sales of $50 million to $100 million within the next few years. So far, the publicly traded Pop N Go has staggered financially, with revenue under the $600,000 mark last year. The company has a market capitalization of $2 million, and its shares trade over the counter at about 20 cents.
Gloria Cosby, publisher of Automatic Merchandiser, said Pop N Go isn’t the first company to try single-serving popcorn vending. Since 1989, several companies have come and gone with similar ideas. But a new generation of consumers--not yet jaded by previous vending experiences and comfortable with new technology--could make the difference, she said.
At Gateway Travel Plaza, a truck stop near Breezewood, Pa., popcorn eaters say they love the Pop N Go machine, which has sat near the hot-dog roller for almost four years, said retail manager Yvonne Bowen.
Bowen said she was one of the original Pop N Go owners.
“People always stop and say, ‘Hey, what’s that?’ . . . They can’t help but buy some popcorn.”
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Kernels of Information
* It is believed that popcorn was the first form of corn to be cultivated.
* The oldest ears of popcorn found were discovered in a bat cave in west-central New Mexico in 1948 and 1950. They were about 5,600 years old.
* When Columbus arrived in the West Indies, natives tried to sell popcorn to his crew.
* Colonial wives served popcorn with sugar and cream for breakfast--the first “puffed” breakfast cereal eaten by Europeans.
* During the Depression, popcorn sold for 5 cents to 10 cents a bag and was considered one of the few affordable luxuries.
* During World War II, sugar was sent overseas for U.S. troops, which meant there wasn’t as much to make candy. Americans ate three times the amount of popcorn.
* In 1945, Percy Spencer discovered that when popcorn was placed under microwave energy, it popped. This led to experiments with other foods and the birth of the microwave oven.
* In an average bag of popcorn, the yellow kernels outnumber the white ones by 9 to 1.
* Americans today consume 17.3 billion quarts of popped popcorn each year. The average American eats about 68 quarts.
Source: U.S. Popcorn Board
