Vermeer Corp. will hold a parade of 50 rounded hay balers through Pella today to celebrate the product’s 50th anniversary of its invention, which revolutionized the agriculture industry. Before the invention of the Vermeer “big, round baler” in 1971, haymaking was a time-consuming, laborious job. When a local farmer told Gary Vermeer the process had him on the verge of leaving the cattle business, Vermeer’s founder started designing a “one-person hay system” — a baler that a single person could operate and one that opened a whole new level of productivity in the field. Vermeer employees and Pella residents will celebrate the invention of the Vermeer round baler throughout the year with events and displays on the Vermeer campus and across the community. Additionally, Vermeer has created a 50th celebration website, vermeerbalers.com, that will allow visitors to hear the story of how the Vermeer larger round baler and how it changed the agriculture Industry. Established in 1948, Vermeer is the largest Central Iowa manufacturer, with 2,900 employees at its Pella complex.