LOVELAND — The companies behind the Northern Colorado snacks Ka-Pop! and Bubba’s Fine Foods are merging and opening a new contract-manufacturing operation for other snack-makers at the same time.
The new company, called Awakened Foods LLC, will act as a holding company for the two snack brands and operate a separate private-label manufacturing line out of the Bubba’s plant in south Loveland — at 225 42nd S. SW — under the name Awakened Food Crafters, CEO Dustin Finkel said.
Ka-Pop!, the trade name for inGRAINed Inc., makes air-popped chips from sorghum. Finkel, who founded that brand, appeared on the venture-capital show “Shark Tank” last year but did not receive funding. Bubba’s Foods LLC produces flavored banana chips and grain-free granola made out of bananas, coconut flakes and nuts. The company specifically uses saba bananas, a cultivar that has the texture of a plantain and tastes like sweet potato when cooked.