INDIANAPOLIS – Being the country’s king of duck producers seems cool enough. Maple Leaf Farms is now flapping its wings for having a product that was tops for being groovy.

The company’s fully cooked roast half duck is the winner of the second annual “Coolest Thing Made in Indiana” contest sponsored by the Indiana Chamber of Commerce (ICC).

Maple Leaf Farms spokesperson Janelle Deatsman said it takes only about 20 minutes of being in an oven for the half roast duck to be ready to eat. The product is sold to restaurants, grocery stores and online.

According to the ICC, there were 54 companies that make everything from racing tires to children’s car seats and wine in the contest. One entry was a maker of replicas of the Batmobile.

The winner was chosen from votes cast online after the contest was promoted on social media.

John Tucker, co-president of the Leesburg-based operation, said it was a fitting award for a longstanding flagship product of the company that grew in popularity during the pandemic as consumers looked for simple-to-prepare, restaurant-quality foods to serve at home.

“We really felt a surge in retail and online sales,” Deatsman said.

In 1958, Donald Wentzel started what was then a small duck raising operation in northern Indiana.

Maple Leaf Farms has gone from raising 280,000 ducks the following year to about 10 million ducks annually.

Indiana is first in the nation in commercial duck production. More than 30 million ducks annually are produced nationwide, with California and Pennsylvania next in production.

Deatsman said Maple Leaf Farms distributes cooked and uncooked ducks, both fresh and frozen, along with other duck products across the nation and worldwide. In addition to whole ducks, their products include duck breasts, duck leg, ground duck and duck appetizers.

The firm, with about 900 total employees, has other facilities like a hatchery and contracts with about 150 farmers to raise and supply ducks for processing. All the ducks are raised across the northern part of the state.

Deatsman said the feathers are taken to another plant in Grand Rapids, Mich., for processing into fiber used in products like pillows and comforters.

The half ducks are roasted at a plant the company built in nearby Milford nearly a half century ago.

Owner and retired CEO Terry Tucker accepted the award during a chamber luncheon in Indianapolis on Dec. 14.

Tucker, the son in-law of the late founder, developed the concept of providing already cooked half ducks and oversaw construction of the roasting facility for restaurants. The products were later offered retail and online.

“The real credit for the success of our roast half duck goes to our team of nearly 60 team members who prepare, hand process and package our roast half duck. We are grateful for their hard work and dedication,” CEO Scott Reinholt said.

Deatsman said the company also has an online store and provides various recipes for duck posted on the company webpage. The meat can be used in anything from salads to tacos. “It’s a very convenient, very versatile product,” she said.

Kevin Brinegar, president and CEO of the state chamber, said the contest helps illustrate the vital role manufacturers have in society and recognizes some of the companies doing especially great things.

“They create the goods that sustain individuals and businesses all across the state and the products make their way throughout the nation and around the world,” he said.