New Leader's NL720 Spreader Wins 2024 ShowStopper Award

By Eric Sfiligoj|August 26, 2024

Since 2007, one of the highlights of every Midwest AG Industries Exposition (MAGIE) has been the awarding of the ShowStopper Award. And in 2024, this trophy given to the product that attendees consider “best in show” was a newcomer to the honor, but a long-standing company in the ag equipment world.

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The 2024 ShowStopper Award went to New Leader Manufacturing of Cedar Rapids, IA, for its new NL720 Spinner Spreader.
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After winning the ShowShopper Award, the entire New Leader team at MAGIE posed for a photo with the trophy and NL720 unit.
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The NL720 features dual bins, allowing for two product applications.
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A close-up of the spinners on the NL720.
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The positive drive belts on the NL720 require minimal maintenance, according to the company.
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The ShowStopper winners for 2024. Pictured from left: CropLife IRON’s Eric Sfiligoj, New Leader’s Zach Rissi and Benjamin Boelter, and Illinois Fertilizer & Chemical Association’s Kevin “K.J.” Johnson.

For 2024, the ShowStopper Award trophy went to New Leader Manufacturing of Cedar Rapids, IA, for its new NL720 Spinner Spreader. This new offering from the 85-year-old company made its formal market debut at the 2024 MAGIE and attendees agreed the NL720 was a great example of new spreader technology in action.

“It feels great,” said Zach Rissi, Business Development Specialist at New Leader, when talking about the NL720 at the company’s MAGIE following the trophy presentation. “We are super excited about this product and to win this award is a great honor.”

Plenty of Key Features

The NL720 chassis-mounted spinner spreader features a 120-foot spread width to provide a 33% increase in productivity over previous models. The unit is designed with tool-free components, a positive-drive straight belt, a fixed feed gate, an operator inspection platform, and simplified spread-pattern testing. The NL720’s integrated control module offers pushbutton spread width changes, allowing the operator to swap between the full 120-foot swath width and a 70- to 90-foot option for windier conditions or when spreading challenging fertilizer products. In addition, the unit has zero grease points.

Interestingly for a ShowStopper Award winner, 2024 MAGIE attendees could see examples of the NL720 at several company booths at the event. Because of its long-standing partnerships with many key ag equipment makers, these spinner spreaders were featured on spreaders at such diverse booth displays as Jenner Ag (which featured Case IH equipment), Fendt/AGCO, and RBR Enterprise.

Now that the NL720 has made its formal market debut at the 2024 MAGIE, ag equipment users should expect these spinner spreaders to begin showing up across crop fields throughout the 2024 fall and 2025 spring fertilizer application seasons.

“Folks who want to find out more about the NL720 should visit our website, newleader.com,” said Rissi.

View Past ShowStopper Award Winners

Sfiligoj is the Editor for both CropLife and CropLife IRON magazines. He travels regularly to cover industry events and has been dedicated to the ag retail industry since he joined the staff in 2000. See all author stories here.