Groomsville Popcorn is grown on our family’s 5th generation farm in Tipton County, Indiana.
Non-GMO Popcorn
Here on the farm we only sell what we grow! Jacob and Amanda Baird run the day to day operations for Groomsville Popcorn with the help of our family and staff. We planted our first popcorn seed in 2015 and never looked back.
We take great pride in growing a healthy snack from non-GMO popcorn seed in the rich soil of Tipton County. Our bounty has been a genuine blessing and we’re thankful we can share a portion of it with you.
Tipton County is home to some of the richest soils
Former Agriculture Secretary Earl Butz once commented that if he had to choose one county in Indiana to have his farm, it would be Tipton County. The soil, a deep glacial till which is unusually level and rich in minerals, supports excellent plant growth.
Tipton County also has excellent annual rainfall and no real need to irrigate in most years. In the early 1800s, Tipton County was part of the Miami Indian Reservation, and generally believed to be inhospitable to settle due to the swamp-like environment. Although you would never know it by driving around today, Tipton County is located on a plateau and straddles two main watersheds: The Wabash and the White rivers. The northern half of the county drains to the north and runs to the Wabash while the south side flows to the White River ultimately ending up in the Ohio River which is Indiana’s southern border.
Before farms could become productive, the soils had to be drained. Without the benefit of mechanized trenchers, bulldozers or earth movers, our ancestors performed the backbreaking job of clearing land, digging open ditches and long trenches by hand and horse to place underground tile in order to drain the overabundance of rainfall that occasionally comes. Back then, wetlands were regularly drained to foster development which today is largely prohibited.
With modern soil conservation and care, these former wetlands contain some of the world’s best soils and continue to produce some of the highest yields in the U.S.
Our ancestors moved to the area in the 1800’s
Our family is recognized by the state as a Hoosier Homestead Farm Family. Dad grew up in the house his great grandfather built in 1900. Surprising by today’s standards, the barn was built first in 1899 to protect the highly prized and life giving livestock most settlers had to have to simply sustain a well-rounded diet. Parts of that barn are preserved on the farm and serve as a vivid reminder of the heritage our forefathers bring to us.
Our ancestors were involved in popcorn production in the early part of the 20th century. It was a time when popcorn production was in it’s infancy and just beginning to catch on as an affordable but tasty snack food.
