We discovered a small yellow seed that popped into a huge, flavorful popcorn. Now we produce five varieties of popcorn including our original - Ella & Ollie Signature Popcorn, white, butterfly, and two mushroom varieties.
Ella & Ollie Signature Popcorn is an heirloom variety offering superior quality, taste and nutrition over the more common hybridized varieties. Heirloom means that it has had the same genetics for a minimum of 50 years and not been crossed with another popcorn. Modern hybrids may offer better yields but they do not compare to heirloom with quality taste and nutrition.
Superior Flavor. Our customers and retailers have taste-tested Ella & Ollie against big-box store varieties and report that Ella & Ollie is clearly superior in flavor.
Maximum Popability: That’s popcorn lingo for the percentage of kernels that pop, resulting in very few old maids! We strive for an ideal popcorn moisture content between 13.5%-14.5%. If moisture is too low, the seed will not pop and if it is too high, the flavor will not be crisp. We are careful to harvest at the optimal time and store the conditioned popcorn in a climate-controlled environment to achieve and maintain optimal moisture.
Low Hull: This means less popcorn stuck in your teeth! The outer shell, or hull, of popcorn explodes when exposed to high temperatures. The brown portion of the popped corn is the outer shell that remains intact after popping. Ella & Ollie’s heirloom seed leaves a low amount of hull intact after it pops.
Nostalgic memories of stove-top popcorn and family traditions inspired Matt, Michelle and Lily Ella Helms to search for a popcorn of superior quality and taste. Many taste-testings later, we discovered a small yellow seed that popped into a huge, flavorful popcorn. The size, flavor, low-hull, and overall appearance made it a unanimous favorite at each taste-testing party. This became our Signature Popcorn and soon after, Ella & Ollie Popcorn was born.
Fortunately, our love for popcorn and history of family farming made it an easy leap to grow this culinary delight on Helms Farms. For over 170 years and across seven generations, the Helms family has been farming in Belleville, IL, just 16 miles from the St. Louis Arch.
After four years in business, we expanded our production to meet the needs of our growing market segments - movie theaters, gourmet popcorn shops, kettle corn companies, specialty gourmet shops and grocery stores. We now produce five varieties of popcorn including our original - Ella & Ollie Signature Popcorn, white, butterfly, and two mushroom varieties.
