DES MOINES, Iowa — The Coolest Thing Made in Iowa Contest is taking nominations for its second year of the competition.

The Coolest Thing Made in Iowa Contest is put on by the Iowa Association of Business and Industry and MidwestOne Bank.

Kelsey O’Connor, the Marketing and Communications Director for the Iowa Association of Business and Industry, said that even more submissions and votes will be cast during the contests second year.

“The first year the contest was really successful. So, we had almost 70 nominations that competed to be named the coolest thing. And we also saw over 76,000 votes cast. So that’s a really great participation rate. And we’re looking for even more in our second year,” O’Conner said.

O’Conner said that the contest highlights manufacturers that produce products in Iowa.

“With all the talk these days about tariffs and the uncertainty and the uncertainty in the economy, this is a great time to be celebrating products that are made here in the state and to highlight the creativity and the entrepreneurship that happens within our own backyards. And a lot of people just really aren’t aware of all the products that are made within the state,” O’Conner said.

Vermeer won the first year of the contest with an automated hay baler. Mindi Vandenvosch, the Vice President of Operations at Vermeer, said that the contest was a great opportunity to showcase a Vermeer product.

“A huge honor to be the first to win that award. And I just think it was a really neat opportunity for our team to get excited about and proud of who Vermeer is, as well as just seeing the cool things that Iowa has. We got a lot of cool companies in Iowa that make some really cool things.” Vandenvosch said.

To learn more about the Coolest Thing Made in Iowa Contest, check out the contest website.