Kansas Agland has reportedon the return of an old corn-popping method. The Atom Pop Corn Popper was invented in the 1950s, at the height of America’s science fiction era. Hence its resemblance to a flying saucer. The Atom Popper fell out of favor in the US with the advent of microwave popcorn. But in the small Kansas community of Bushton, the Orth brothers are trying to bring back the Cold War-era popping device. From the tiny post office in the community of just 270 residents, Nilus and Loren Orth ship Atom Pop poppers to all fifty states.
Production of the Atom Pop originally began in Quincy, Kansas in 1952. In 1975, the Atom Pop operation was moved to Fredonia, Kansas. At its peak, the QuinCraft company was producing 20,000 poppers a year.