Grippo’s Buttered Popcorn Potato Chips Are Here—and They’re a UDF Exclusive

Tuesday August 11, 2026 – Two Cincinnati-area favorites are teaming up for a snack that combines the flavors of movie-night popcorn with the crunch of a potato chip.

Grippo’s Buttered Popcorn Potato Chips are the latest creation from Grippo’s and United Dairy Farmers, better known as UDF. The new limited-edition potato chips take inspiration from classic buttered popcorn, translating its familiar buttery, salty flavor into Grippo’s signature crunchy potato-chip format.

The collaboration brings together two companies with deep roots in Greater Cincinnati and gives Grippo’s fans another unusual flavor to track down.

According to a report on the UDF and Grippo’s Buttered Popcorn Potato Chips, the new flavor is being offered through participating UDF locations.

For Cincinnati snack fans, that makes this much more than another potato chip launch. It is a collaboration between two brands that have been part of the region for generations.

What Are Grippo’s Buttered Popcorn Potato Chips?

The new Grippo’s Buttered Popcorn Potato Chips combine the crunch of traditional potato chips with a seasoning inspired by buttered popcorn.

Instead of choosing between a bag of chips and a bowl of movie-theater-style popcorn, the flavor essentially puts the two snack experiences together.

The concept is simple, but it makes sense from a flavor perspective.

Potato chips and buttered popcorn already share two major characteristics: both are salty, savory snacks built around a relatively neutral base. Adding buttery popcorn seasoning to a potato chip creates a familiar flavor in an unexpected format.

It also fits Grippo’s history of experimenting with distinctive potato-chip seasonings rather than limiting itself to basic flavors.

Where Can You Buy Grippo’s Buttered Popcorn Chips?

The biggest question for snack fans will likely be where to buy Grippo’s Buttered Popcorn Potato Chips.

The new flavor is tied to United Dairy Farmers, making UDF the destination for consumers hoping to try the collaboration.

UDF is especially concentrated in Ohio and the Greater Cincinnati region, although its footprint extends beyond the city.

According to United Dairy Farmers, the company had 175 stores in 2025, operating across Central and Southwest Ohio, Indiana and Northern Kentucky.

That means the new Grippo’s flavor will be considerably easier to find for consumers in UDF territory than for Grippo’s fans elsewhere in the country.

Availability can also vary from store to store, particularly with special or limited-edition products, so consumers looking specifically for the Buttered Popcorn flavor may want to check their local UDF.

Grippo’s Has Been a Cincinnati Snack Favorite for More Than a Century

The new flavor becomes more interesting when viewed through the history of Grippo’s itself.

Grippo’s official company history dates the business back to 1919, when Angelo Grippo founded the Grippo’s Cone Company in Cincinnati.

The company didn't originally make the potato chips for which it would eventually become famous.

Grippo’s started by manufacturing rolled sugar cones from a small operation on Court Street in Cincinnati. Pretzels were later added to the business, and by 1923, the company was hand-twisting and baking traditional pretzels.

Angelo Grippo also developed the loop pretzel in 1930. The distinctive shape was designed to be easier to manufacture while resisting breakage.

Potato chips didn't join the Grippo’s lineup until 1959.

That addition would eventually become a major part of the company's identity.

Today, Grippo’s is particularly well known for its heavily seasoned Bar-B-Q Potato Chips, but its lineup has expanded to encompass a variety of potato chips, pretzels and other snack foods.

More than a century after its founding, Grippo’s remains closely associated with Cincinnati. The company describes itself as a five-generation family business and says its snack foods are made without preservatives.

UDF Is Another Longtime Cincinnati Brand

The other half of the Buttered Popcorn collaboration has an equally strong Cincinnati identity.

The history of United Dairy Farmers stretches back to 1938, when Carl H. Lindner Sr. began developing the concept that would become UDF in Norwood, Ohio.

UDF built its reputation around dairy products, particularly milk and ice cream, before evolving into a broader convenience-store business.

By 1960, UDF operated around 30 Cincinnati-area stores. During the 1960s and 1970s, the company expanded both geographically and in the variety of products offered in its stores.

Ice cream remained a central part of the business.

In 1982, UDF introduced its Homemade Brand premium ice cream line, further establishing the company as a familiar destination for desserts and convenience foods in the region.

UDF says it now operates nearly 200 stores across three states.

That history makes a UDF-exclusive Grippo’s flavor a natural regional collaboration. Both brands were built in Greater Cincinnati, both remain strongly identified with the area, and both have developed generations of local customers.

Why Buttered Popcorn Works as a Potato Chip Flavor

At first glance, Buttered Popcorn Potato Chips may sound like an unusual mashup.

In practice, however, the two snacks have plenty in common.

Both potato chips and popcorn depend heavily on seasoning. Salt is fundamental to each, while butter flavor is one of the most recognizable ways of preparing popcorn.

The flavor also carries an element of nostalgia.

Buttered popcorn is strongly associated with movie theaters, sporting events, fairs and nights spent watching movies at home. Turning that recognizable taste into a potato chip gives consumers something new while still relying on a flavor they already understand.

That combination—familiar but unexpected—is particularly useful for limited-edition snacks.

Consumers don't have to wonder what “buttered popcorn” is supposed to taste like, but they may still be curious about what happens when that flavor is applied to a crunchy potato chip.

Grippo’s Has Built Its Reputation on Bold Flavors

Grippo’s is particularly suited to this type of experiment because flavor has long been central to the company's reputation.

The brand's famous Bar-B-Q chips have become closely associated with Cincinnati and are known for their assertive seasoning.

Grippo’s has since expanded its potato-chip portfolio with flavors including Salt & Vinegar, Cheddar & Jalapeño, Hot Dill Pickle and Sweet Bermuda Onion.

The company has also extended its Bar-B-Q identity beyond ordinary chips, offering variations on its signature seasoning and even selling the seasoning itself.

Buttered Popcorn Grippo’s takes the company in a somewhat different direction.

Instead of emphasizing heat, barbecue spices or tanginess, the new flavor centers on a buttery, salty profile designed to resemble another classic American snack.

Regional Food Collaborations Can Create Extra Buzz

The partnership between UDF and Grippo’s also demonstrates the appeal of regional food collaborations.

National snack launches can reach millions of consumers, but regional products have a different advantage: local identity.

A Cincinnati consumer may recognize both Grippo’s and UDF immediately. Putting the two names together turns a new potato chip flavor into something connected specifically with the region.

That hometown connection can also make limited products more collectible and interesting to consumers outside the immediate market.

Grippo’s already has a following that extends beyond Cincinnati, while UDF remains strongly associated with Ohio and the surrounding region. A collaborative flavor gives fans of both brands a reason to seek out something they won't necessarily find in every supermarket nationwide.

Are Grippo’s Buttered Popcorn Chips Limited Edition?

Consumers interested in trying the new Grippo’s Buttered Popcorn Potato Chips shouldn't assume the flavor will become a permanent addition to the company's lineup.

Special retail collaborations and unusual snack flavors are often designed around limited availability, allowing brands to generate excitement and gauge consumer response.

That scarcity is part of the appeal.

For existing Grippo’s fans, Buttered Popcorn offers a reason to try something beyond the company's better-known Bar-B-Q varieties. For UDF customers, the exclusive product adds another locally connected item that isn't available everywhere.

Grippo’s and UDF Put a Cincinnati Spin on Buttered Popcorn

The new Grippo’s Buttered Popcorn Potato Chips combine two familiar snacks while bringing together two companies with more than a century of combined Cincinnati history.

Grippo’s has been producing snacks since 1919 and potato chips since 1959. UDF traces its beginnings to 1938 and has grown from a local dairy business into a major regional convenience-store chain.

Now the two hometown brands are putting their names on the same bag.

For consumers, the appeal is straightforward: the salty, buttery flavor associated with movie-night popcorn delivered in the crunchy form of a potato chip.

For Cincinnati-area snack fans, however, the collaboration has an additional ingredient—local nostalgia.

And because the new Grippo’s flavor is connected to UDF, anyone hoping to taste the unusual popcorn-and-potato-chip mashup may want to grab a bag when they see one.

Sources: Yahoo — UDF and Grippo’s Buttered Popcorn Potato Chips | Grippo’s — Our Company History | Grippo’s — About Us | United Dairy Farmers — Our Story | United Dairy Farmers — About UDF

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