Iowans have picked a winner and it is a picker.
The crown of Coolest Thing Made in Iowa 2025 goes to a product from one of the oldest, most iconic manufacturers in the state’s history: the CP770 Cotton Picker made by John Deere at its plant in Ankeny.
Wearing its trademark John Deere green paint, the cotton picker was anything but a lightweight entry into the contest. The six-row harvester boasts a 550 horsepower engine, stretches over 34 feet long and tips the scales at 68,900 pounds, according to product information on the John Deere website.
“Dedicated employees at Des Moines Works have been assembling cotton pickers in Ankeny since 1950,” Rosalind Fox, factory manager at Ankeny, said in news release.
“We will forever innovate on behalf of our customers, committed to delivering the world’s most advanced cotton harvesting equipment to their fields,” Fox said, adding, “This award belongs to everyone who has contributed to the success of the CP770, from concept to fabrication, assembly to delivery, and everything in between.”
But the biggest question of all remains: How did manufacturing of cotton pickers end up among the corn and soybean fields of Iowa?
It’s simple, according to John Deere. When it began making cotton harvesters, the company didn’t have any production facilities in the South, where cotton is grown. So when the company opened its facility in Ankeny in 1948 at the site of a World War II ordinance plant, it utilized the space available there. Since then, the company also has established cotton picker production at its Thibodaux Works in Louisiana, west of New Orleans.
Though based in Moline on the Illinois side of the Quad Cities, John Deere employs thousands of Iowans in plants across the state. It succeeds last year’s winner in the inaugural edition of the contest, also a long-time Iowa agricultural implement manufacturer. Vermeer Corp. of Pella was honored for its self-propelled baler.
The contest began in March with 69 nominated products. In successive round of online voting, Iowans winnowed the list to a final four in May. In addition to the cotton picker, they were:
The nearly 10-week-long voting process saw more than 93,000 votes cast, a more than 21% increase from the 76,382 in 2024.
The contest is sponsored by the Iowa Association of Business and Industry and MidwestOne Bank. ABI announced the winner at its annual conference in Council Bluffs.
Iowa is one of 20 states holding Coolest Thing contests. The contest serves as a chance to promote manufacturing in Iowa, accounting for more than 220,000 jobs and contributing over $43 billion to the state’s economy, according to ABI.
Kevin Baskins covers jobs and the economy for the Des Moines Register. Reach him at kbaskins@registermedia.com.
This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: The voting is over. What’s the Coolest Thing Made in Iowa for 2025?
Reporting by Kevin Baskins, Des Moines Register / Des Moines Register
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