2 hrs ago
Gourmet Popcornica Wins 2026 Changemaker Financial Transformation Award
Gourmet Popcornica is a company from Chennai that makes and supplies popcorn.
It started in 2014.
The company works with farmers and helps them grow popcorn maize.
It also handles seeds, processing, storage and deliveries.
Its products reach cinema halls and shops.
This work helped India rely less on imported popcorn.
Imports dropped from 70% of demand to 15% over about a decade.
The company received a Changemaker Financial Transformation award in 2026.
Its managing director said farmers can grow high-quality popcorn when they receive the right support and fair payments.
Chennai-based Gourmet Popcornica won the Changemaker Financial Transformation award at the eighth businessline Changemaker Awards 2026.
Founded in 2014, the company built a popcorn value chain spanning seeds, farmers, processing, storage, cinema supply and branded retail products.
India’s popcorn imports fell from 70% of domestic demand a decade ago to 15% currently, while domestic production grew more than 2.5 times.
Gourmet Popcornica created what it describes as India’s first fully integrated farm-to-consumer popcorn ecosystem.
Managing Director SBP Pattabhi Rama Rao credited quality seeds, farmer guidance, assured procurement prices and direct bank payments.
- Who
- Gourmet Popcornica, led by Managing Director SBP Pattabhi Rama Rao.
- What
- The Chennai-based company won the Changemaker Financial Transformation award at the eighth businessline Changemaker Awards.
- Where
- The company is based in Chennai, India.
- When
- The award was announced on September 25, 2026, during the 2026 awards edition.
- Why
- The company built an integrated popcorn value chain and helped reduce India’s dependence on imported popcorn.
Key facts
- Company
- Gourmet Popcornica
- Headquarters
- Chennai, India
- Founded
- 2014
- Award
- Changemaker Financial Transformation award
- Awards edition
- Eighth edition of the businessline Changemaker Awards 2026
- Import dependence
- India’s popcorn imports fell from 70% of demand a decade ago to 15% currently
- Domestic production
- Expanded by more than 2.5 times
Quotes
SBP Pattabhi Rama Rao
Managing Director of Gourmet Popcornica
“We did not have a grand plan to become the fifth largest in the world. We had a simple, stubborn idea — Indian farmers can grow the world-class popcorn if they had the quality seed, economic guidance and ensure procurement prices and payments directly on their bank accounts.”
thehindubusinessline.com
Sources
Related news
Education and Innovation Transforming Rural Careers Through Value-Added Agriculture
India’s Everyday Staples Could Drive the Next Nutrition Revolution
Modi Highlights Avocado Farming and New Farmer Incomes
India’s Avocado Boom Turns Luxury Fruit into Farmer Opportunity
Bengaluru Couple Turns Failed Cloud Kitchen into Rs 2 Crore Venture
Former Wipro Techie Builds Rs 600 Crore Farming Business
