Aunt Em’s
Aunt Em's Gourmet Popcorn Inc. is a U.S. popcorn manufacturer founded in 2002, producing salted and oil-based ready-to-eat popcorn. Acquired in 2026 by Watershed Foods, the brand now operates under the newly formed Heartland Food Solutions LLC.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2002
- HeadquartersDeer Creek, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingHardware or Manufacturing
What Aunt Em’s does
Aunt Em's Gourmet Popcorn Inc. is a U.S.-based popcorn manufacturer founded in 2002 and headquartered in Deer Creek, Illinois. The company produces salted and oil-based ready-to-eat gourmet popcorn using specialized roasting and popping equipment. It operated as a small, privately held specialty food producer (11-50 employees) supplying the artisan snack category prior to acquisition.
In 2026, Aunt Em's was acquired by Watershed Foods LLC, a producer of freeze-dried food products and ingredients. Watershed Foods purchased Aunt Em's production equipment and brand and transferred operations to a newly formed entity, Heartland Food Solutions LLC, establishing its entry into the ready-to-eat popcorn market. The acquisition is paired with a $1 million development grant from the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity to the Village of Deer Creek and a commitment to create 40 jobs in a community of fewer than 700 residents. Aunt Em's is now positioned within Watershed Foods' multi-brand portfolio alongside Top Fox Snacks, serving the snack and toddler nutrition verticals and leveraging shared capabilities in freeze-drying, oven-baking, roasting, and popping.
Post-acquisition, Aunt Em's functions as a brand within Watershed Foods' operations rather than an independent company. No revenue, pricing, customer segmentation, or distribution channel details are publicly disclosed, and the company's standalone financial trajectory prior to acquisition is not documented in the available sources.
Aunt Em’s firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Aunt Em’s
- Legal name
- Aunt Em's Gourmet Popcorn Inc.
- Website
- https://auntems.net
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2002
- Operating status
- Acquired
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Aunt Em's Gourmet Popcorn Inc. is a U.S. popcorn manufacturer founded in 2002, producing salted and oil-based ready-to-eat popcorn. Acquired in 2026 by Watershed Foods, the brand now operates under the newly formed Heartland Food Solutions LLC.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Aunt Em’s industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Gourmet Popcorn Manufacturing
- SIC
- Food And Kindred Products (2000)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Popcorn Manufacturing (AFAKAIAC)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Popcorn & Puffed Snacks (CRADABAH)
Keywords
Where Aunt Em’s is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Deer Creek
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Aunt Em’s business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Hardware or Manufacturing
- Cost components
- Supply Chain, Operations, Personnel, Marketing or Sales
Aunt Em’s product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Aunt Em's Gourmet Popcorn Inc. produced and sold gourmet popcorn products (salted and oil corn) using specialized roasting and popping equipment from its Deer Creek, Illinois operations. Following the 2026 acquisition by Watershed Foods LLC, the brand's production capabilities and equipment have been absorbed into Heartland Food Solutions LLC, Watershed's new entity for expanding into the ready-to-eat popcorn market.
Product overview
Aunt Em's is a gourmet popcorn brand that has been acquired by Watershed Foods LLC. The company operates as part of Watershed Foods' portfolio, which focuses on freeze-dried food products and ingredients, oven-baking, roasting, and popping capabilities. Aunt Em's Popcorn joins other brands like Top Fox Snacks within the Watershed Foods family, serving snack and toddler nutrition verticals.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Aunt Em's Gourmet Popcorn A gourmet popcorn brand offering salted and oil corn popcorn products, produced via specialized roasting and popping equipment. The brand has been acquired by Watershed Foods and is now part of its snack portfolio alongside Top Fox Snacks.
Companies that use Aunt Em’s
Customer profileIdeal customer profiles1 record
Aunt Em’s technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature1 record
Aunt Em’s partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
One partnership is on record.
- Watershed FoodscoreWatershed Foods LLC is acquiring Aunt Em's Gourmet Popcorn Inc.'s equipment and expanding operations under a newly formed entity called Heartland Food Solutions LLC. This acquisition enables Watershed Foods to enter the ready-to-eat popcorn market. The transition is expected to complete in 2026.
Scale indicators2 records
Recent moves4 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Aunt Em’s competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Angie's BOOMCHICKAPOP: Premium ready-to-eat popcorn brand owned by Conagra Brands. Closely comparable to Aunt Em's as a kettle/gourmet popcorn CPG brand, though at significantly greater scale and distribution.
- Kernel Season's: Specialty popcorn seasoning brand supplying toppings and flavors to retail and foodservice. Comparable adjacent product in the popcorn consumption experience and similar scale to Aunt Em's.
- SkinnyPop Popcorn: Leading better-for-you ready-to-eat popcorn brand (owned by Hershey). Directly comparable as a packaged gourmet popcorn brand competing for the same consumer occasion and retail shelf space as Aunt Em's.
- Popcorn Indiana: Specialty popcorn brand (now part of J&J Snack Foods) producing flavored and caramel popcorns. Closely comparable to Aunt Em's as a gourmet/specialty popcorn CPG brand of similar size.
- Top Fox Snacks: Sister snack brand within Watershed Foods' portfolio. Closely comparable as a fellow gourmet snack brand under the same parent, sharing distribution and operational infrastructure with Aunt Em's.
- Jolly Time Pop Corn: Independently owned (American Pop Corn Company) popcorn brand offering kernels and ready-to-eat products. Comparable mid-sized CPG popcorn competitor without a major conglomerate parent.
Broad incumbents
- Orville Redenbacher's: Iconic popcorn brand owned by Conagra covering microwave, ready-to-eat, and kernels. Directly comparable product overlap with Aunt Em's, but at vastly larger scale and broader portfolio.
- Cracker Jack: PepsiCo/Frito-Lay's caramel-coated popcorn and peanut snack. Comparable sweet/savory gourmet popcorn product profile, though anchored in a much larger portfolio.
- Smartfood: PepsiCo/Frito-Lay's flagship popcorn brand. Comparable in product category (ready-to-eat popcorn) but operates as part of a much broader snack portfolio with national DSD distribution Aunt Em's lacks.
Emerging players
- Pipcorn (Pipsnacks): Independent better-for-you popcorn and snack brand focused on heirloom corn. Comparable as a smaller, premium-positioned popcorn CPG competitor to Aunt Em's in the gourmet category.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat2 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights5 records
Customer concentration
Aunt Em’s social profiles
Digital presenceAunt Em’s financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Aunt Em’s leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Aunt Em’s funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Aunt Em’s M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Aunt Em’s
What does Aunt Em’s do?
Aunt Em's Gourmet Popcorn Inc. produced and sold gourmet popcorn products (salted and oil corn) using specialized roasting and popping equipment from its Deer Creek, Illinois operations. Following the 2026 acquisition by Watershed Foods LLC, the brand's production capabilities and equipment have been absorbed into Heartland Food Solutions LLC, Watershed's new entity for expanding into the ready-to-eat popcorn market.
Is Aunt Em’s a public or private company?
Aunt Em’s is a private company. It is classified as corporate owned and is currently acquired.
When was Aunt Em’s founded?
Aunt Em’s was founded in 2002. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Aunt Em’s based?
Aunt Em’s is headquartered in Deer Creek, United States, in the North America region.
Who are Aunt Em’s's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Angie's BOOMCHICKAPOP, Kernel Season's, SkinnyPop Popcorn, Popcorn Indiana, Top Fox Snacks and Jolly Time Pop Corn. Broad incumbents are Orville Redenbacher's, Cracker Jack and Smartfood. Pipcorn (Pipsnacks) is listed as an emerging player.
Does Aunt Em’s have an API?
No public API is recorded for Aunt Em’s.
What industry is Aunt Em’s in?
Aunt Em’s's product category is Gourmet Popcorn Manufacturing. Its primary akta.pro industry code is AFAKAIAC, Popcorn Manufacturing, with a secondary code of CRADABAH, Popcorn & Puffed Snacks. Its SIC code is 2000.