Up for the honor of “Coolest Thing Made in Illinois” is a product manufactured in Elgin, and residents can cast their votes for it to win.
Orchard Valley Harvest’s Cran Nut Mix is made by Elgin-based John B. Sanfilippo & Son Inc., better known as the company behind Fisher Nuts, and is in the running in this year’s Illinois Manufacturers’ Association’s “Makers Madness” competition.
Voting to narrow the field of more than 100 products to 16 runs through 11:59 p.m. Sunday, March 22. Participants can vote at makersmadnessil.com up to five times per day. If Cran Nut Mix makes the cut, weekly votes will be held in which it will either progress in the competition or be eliminated.
“To our knowledge, no one at our company nominated us so it is great to hear that we have a cashew cranberry lover in Illinois that thinks we are worthy of consideration,” said Kelly Day, Sanfilippo’s executive director administration, risk & project management.
According to a product information sheet from Day, OVH Cran Nut Mix is one of the brand’s most popular trail mixes and “a wholesome blend of crunchy almonds, cashews and dried sweetened cranberries.” It comes in “portion-control packs,” made with real fruit, has three grams of plant-based protein per serving and is grain- and gluten-free.
Cran Nut Mix was featured in several ads from 2024 that can be viewed on the Orchard Valley Harvest YouTube page. One called, “Say No To No Nut November” (www.youtube.com/watch?v=rRTgMaq-Sb4), racked up more than 1.5 million views.
Makers Madness-nominated products run the gamut from Ash Dome’s planetarium domes made in Plainfield to Boeing’s MQ-25 Stingray to the the first-ever aerial refueling drone designed to land on a Navy ship, which is made in Mascoutah. Voters can also vote for Caterpillar’s D9 bulldozer made in East Peoria; Eli’s Cheesecake made in Chicago; Gindo’s and Whiskey Acres’ Maple Bourbon Whiskey Sauce made in St. Charles; Dart Container’s Red SOLO cups made in Urbana; Hatch Product Development & Contract Manufacturing’s vertical turntables for vinyl record albums made in Waukegan; and Rivian’s R16, a seven-seat EV SUV made in Normal.
After the field is narrowed down to the top 16 vote-getters, the competition switches into the format used in the NCAA basketball tournaments. Consecutive weekly rounds of voting in head-to-head matchups reduce the competitors until the winning product is announced at a ceremony April 15 at the governor’s mansion in Springfield.
Presented by Comcast Business, the annual event is designed to draw attention to the wide array of products manufactured across Illinois. Last year’s winner was MTH Pumps’ aerial firefighting helicopter refill pump made in Plano.
According to the Illinois Manufacturers’ Association, manufacturing is the largest contributor of any industry to the state’s gross domestic product, supporting nearly a third of all jobs in Illinois and contributing more than $580 billion to the state’s economy each year.
“Illinois manufacturers make amazing products that deserve to be celebrated for their innovation, creativity and excellence,” Mark Denzler, association president and CEO, said in a news release. “Our manufacturers are solving some of the world’s most pressing challenges while creating jobs and generating economic investment in communities throughout our state.”
Coolest Thing Made in Illinois votes can be cast at makersmadnessil.com every week until the final product is chosen.
Mike Danahey is a freelance reporter for The Courier-News.
