What’s The ‘Coolest Thing Made In Iowa’? Nominations Are Open

Make a mental list of stuff you know is made in Iowa.

Take a second to Google your own brain for what stuff you know-and like-that's made right here in Iowa.

Back for another year, the Coolest Thing Made In Iowa contest has officially opened nominations for 2026.

In 2025, the winner was the CP770 Cotton Picker (John Deere) and in 2024, the winner was the Vermeer ZR5-1200 self-propelled baler (Vermeer Corporation). So here are the eligibility requirements:

1. The company manufacturing the product does not have to be a member of the Iowa Association of Business and Industry (ABI)
2. The company's HQ does not have to be in Iowa
3. The product has to be made in an Iowa-based facility but it doesn't have to be sold or marketed in the state
4. It must be made using a manufacturing process (so a restaurant that does 'made-to-order' pizzas wouldn't qualify but a food manufacturer that mass-produces frozen pizzas would)
5. One nomination per company is encouraged
6. Winning companies can't participate in the contest for one year and each winning product can't be nominated again
7. Voting is open to the public. Votes can be cast one vote per device, per day.

Nominations are open through March 27th, with voting beginning on April 7th-15th. There will be a popular vote round during that time, then on April 16th, the top 16 are announced. On April 17th, the 1st round of voting before the top 8 are announced on April 23rd. The second round of voting is April 24th-29th and the top 4 will be announced on May 4th. May 5th kicks off the final round of voting before the winner is announced on June 3rd.

You can nominate a product and business here.