Butterkist facts for kids
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Formerly
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Butter-Kist |
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| Industry | Food |
| Founded | 1914 |
| Founder | Fred Hoke and James Holcomb |
| Headquarters | Pontefract, England, United Kingdom |
| Owner | KP Snacks |
Butterkist is a very popular brand of popcorn in the United Kingdom. It's owned by a company called KP Snacks and is actually the best-selling popcorn brand in the UK!
Contents
The Story of Butterkist
How it Started
The Butterkist story began in 1914 in Kentucky, United States. Two people, Fred Hoke and James Holcomb, started selling machines that made popcorn. They called their brand Butter-Kist.
As their business grew, more and more people bought their popcorn machines. This helped the Butter-Kist brand become well-known across the United States.
Coming to the UK
In 1938, Butter-Kist popcorn machines arrived in the United Kingdom. People started buying this popcorn at cinemas, just like in the US.
During World War II, the brand became even more popular. Many United States Army soldiers were stationed in the UK before going to Europe. They enjoyed Butterkist popcorn, which helped the brand grow quickly.
Growing After the War
After World War II, a company called Craven Keiller opened a factory in York, England. They started selling Butterkist popcorn directly to cinema chains.
Many foods were hard to get in the UK after the war because of "rationing" (meaning people could only buy small amounts of certain foods). But the basic ingredients for Butterkist popcorn were not rationed. This helped Butterkist become the top-selling popcorn brand in the UK.
Changes in Ownership
The sales of Butterkist often followed how many people went to the cinema. After big booms in the 1950s and 1980s, sales started to slow down by 1998.
Because of this, Craven Keiller sold the brand to Cadbury Trebor Bassett. In 2000, Butterkist became part of Cadbury's Monkhill Confectionery group. Production then moved to Pontefract, West Yorkshire.
Later, in 2008, Butterkist was sold again to a company called Tangerine Confectionery. Then, on July 17, 2017, the Butterkist brand was sold once more to its current owner, KP Snacks.
Different Kinds of Butterkist Popcorn
As of 2025, you can find Butterkist in several tasty varieties:
- Salted
- Microwavable Salted
- Sweet
- Microwavable Sweet
- Sweet and Salty
- Microwavable Sweet and Salty
- Toffee
- Caramelised Biscuit
See also
