A popcorn giant in small-town Nebraska: How the Zangger family grew an international seed behemoth

On a bitter October morning in 1982, Chuck Zangger stood in his field near North Loup, staring at the brittle, ruined stalks of corn. The early frost had stolen the popcorn grower’s harvest — 600 acres of kernels that would never pop. 

He knelt, scooping a handful of hard, lifeless seeds into his palm, rubbing them between his fingers as the wind whistled through the empty husks. Years of work, gone overnight.

Frustration churned in his chest as he trudged back inside and picked up the phone. He expected advice or sympathy when he called his seed supplier, Crookham Company., in Idaho. Instead, the voice on the other end delivered a challenge.

“If you don’t like it, why don’t you breed your own popcorn?”

Zangger hung up, staring at the receiver. Breed his own popcorn? The idea had never crossed his mind. But the more he thought about it, the more it made sense. If no one was making hybrids tailored for Nebraska, maybe he should.

That single conversation sparked a journey that would grow into one of the area’s largest employers and change the face of hybrid popcorn production worldwide.

From peanut butter jar to global leader 

Today, Zangger Popcorn Hybrids, a family-owned business in the heart of Nebraska’s popcorn belt, produces 20%-30% of the world’s hybrid popcorn seeds. 

The town of North Loup, population 323, 55 miles northwest of Grand Island, may seem an unlikely headquarters for an international popcorn empire. But the seeds produced there have gone to more than 40 countries over the decades.

Back in the 1980s, Nebraska’s popcorn farmers faced a significant problem: Existing hybrids weren’t suited to the state’s unpredictable climate. Chuck Zangger knew he needed a better solution.

That’s when he remembered something buried in his mother’s garden shed — an old Skippy peanut butter jar filled with seeds.

Fifteen years earlier, a friend had gifted the Zangger family a handful of Native American flint corn seeds. Zangger had nearly forgotten about it, but now, staring at those deep-red kernels, he had an idea: What if he crossbred them with traditional popcorn? Flint corn was hardy and resilient — everything Nebraska hybrids needed to be.

Some early experiments failed miserably — low yields, poor pop volume, strange colors. But by 1984, after much trial and error, Zangger developed his first hybrid: Phoenix, named for its rise from hardship. Seven years later, Zangger Popcorn Hybrids was officially in the seed business.

“That peanut butter jar of seeds became the foundation for everything we’ve built,” Chuck Zangger said.

What the Zanggers have built is one of the area’s most important employers. At its peak season, the company employs just over 100 people, including some 60 seasonal workers, many of whom are area teenagers. Zangnger pays them wages that increase with time and experience. When it comes time to continue their education, Zangger offers a number of scholarship opportunities. Some of those young adults return to North Loup to work for the company once they have finished their education. 

It was far from easy, though. Chuck and his wife, Carrie, built the company from scratch, weathering years of uncertainty and near losses. 

“There were times when we nearly lost everything,” Carrie admitted. “But our love for farming and belief in what we were building kept us going.”

The science of popcorn

Nebraska is consistently among the top popcorn-producing states in the U.S., which is responsible for nearly all the popcorn grown globally, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The state produces 40%-50% of the national supply. 

The crop has been a part of the state’s ag landscape since the late 1800s, and that lengthy history works in the state’s favor, said Samantha Daniel, Nebraska Extension educator specializing in crops and water.

“Nebraska’s long agricultural history and the widespread use of advanced planting techniques also play a key role in supporting high-quality popcorn production,” she said.

Valley County, where the Zanggers are headquartered, isn’t the top popcorn-producing county in the state — far larger Lincoln County produced nearly 81 million pounds in 2022, according to USDA figures. But Valley is very much at the epicenter of Nebraska’s popcorn prowess.

In addition to the Zanggers, North Loup is home to Popcorn County USA, a popcorn grower, processor and distributor that also has an international footprint. 

In August, North Loup will host its 124th iteration of Popcorn Days, which boasts being the longest continuously running festival in Nebraska.

“Popcorn is a big business here in Valley County,” said Caleb Pollard, executive director of Valley County Economic Development.

The same characteristics that make Nebraska good for growing field corn used for animal feed and ethanol also make it good for growing popcorn.

“High-quality soils, warm, sunny days paired with cool nights, and reliable irrigation make it well-suited for popcorn,” said Ron Seymour, a Nebraska Extension educator specializing in corn and soybean production. 

Keeping it in the family

The Zangger family’s connection to the area started not long after popcorn popped up as a viable commercial crop.

Chuck’s grandfather, Wilber Oscar Zangger, moved from Iowa to Nebraska with his wife, Merle, to start a farm in 1925. Originally focused on cattle, sugar beets and sweet corn, the family gradually transitioned to popcorn.

By 1937, the USDA officially “recognized Valley County as a premier popcorn-growing region.” During World War II, local farmers — including the Zanggers — supplied popcorn for military rations, further cementing the area’s reputation.

But these days, the Zanggers aren’t your typical producers.

“We don’t just grow popcorn; we engineer it,” said Josh Zangger, Chuck’s son and the company’s president.

Zangger hybrids are known for their resilience, expansion ratio and consistency, making them a top choice for farmers across Asia, Europe and the Americas, Josh Zangger said.

Those connections — and similar ones from a handful of other businesses — make Valley County an unexpected global destination. Pollard, the economic development director, co-owns a brewery in Ord, and said it’s not unusual to have customers from Germany, France, Argentina, Chile and elsewhere. 

“It’s really neat to see who’s walking through the doors sometimes when it comes to global ag business,” Pollard said.

Unlike many large agricultural operations, the Zanggers still handpick popcorn during harvest to ensure seed integrity — a process that has remained largely unchanged for decades.

And it remains largely a family operation. Along with Josh, the Zanggers’ other two sons, Luke and Jacob, also play integral roles in the company’s operations.

The business still operates from the same 1925 barn where Chuck Zangger’s father once stored his first harvests. The walls, lined with aged wooden beams, still carry the scent of dried corn. And in the office, tucked away on a shelf, sits that same peanut butter jar of forgotten seeds — dusty, worn and quietly marking the beginning of a legacy.

“There’s a history of growing popcorn in this valley,” Josh Zangger said. “And we’re proud to continue that tradition while taking Nebraska’s popcorn to the world.”