KNOX COUNTY, Ind. (WTWO/WAWV) — Knox County is kicking off the Watermelon Festival with a new event similar to the popular reality show Shark Tank.

The Watermelon Business Challenge is being hosted by the Pantheon giving participants the challenge of creating products out of fresh watermelons or involving the process of watermelon production. Participants in this competition will present their product concepts to a panel of judges in the hopes of being selected as one of the three finalists. The finalists will then compete for the top prize of $1,000 at the Watermelon Festival.

Contestant Dartanyan Abney said he’s excited to participate with the community.

“I know a lot of the contestants we know each other. We’re getting competitive for that reason, but then in a good way we’re encouraging each other to try new ideas,” Abney said. “Even though watermelon might not be our usual product that we sell, we have been able to come up with something that might be of use and just help out agriculture here in Knox County.”

The Watermelon Festival will be August 5 and 6 in downtown Vincennes.