Manufacturing has long been woven into Ankeny’s history.
In the early 1940s, Ankeny was home to a large ordinance plant that produced nearly 4 billion rounds of ammunition for use in World War II. After the war, a large portion of the site was redeveloped by John Deere, now the city’s largest private employer with about 1,500 workers.
Today, Ankeny continues to support a strong manufacturing base. Among the numerous manufacturers located in the northern Polk County community are Mrs. Clark’s Foods, which makes salad dressings and mayonnaise; Kreg Tool Co., known for its power tools; and AccuMold, a maker of micro-molded components for the medical and automotive industries…