Minneapolis - Saint Paul Metropolitan Area Home to 571 Major Industrial Plant Sites

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Researched by Industrial Information Resources, Incorporated; Houston, Texas). Known as the Twin Cities, Minneapolis and Saint Paul, Minnesota, emerged on the banks of the Mississippi River in the middle of the 19th century. Due to its proximity to agricultural farming communities of the Midwest and an abundant and cheap energy source, in the form of Saint Anthony Falls, Minneapolis became the world’s leading producer of flour in the early 1900's. The flour milling industry spurred the area's growth, giving Minneapolis the foundation for the large industrial base that it has today. The flour industry also spawned many major corporations that still exist today, such as General Mills, Cargill, and Pillsbury.

Today, the Minneapolis - Saint Paul area is home to a large industrial plant population, with good rail and river transportation infrastructure in place. The Mississippi River begins to be navigable in the Twin Cities area, enabling raw materials and finished products to be shipped worldwide.

Industrialinfo.com is monitoring industrial activity at 571 major industrial plants located within a 100-mile radius of Minneapolis. The majority of these plants, about 208, are classified as industrial manufacturing plants. Seventy-six of those plants have employment of 500 or more. The largest plant is IBM Corporation's 4,800-employee business computer manufacturing plant in Rochester, Minnesota.

The area's early prowess in flour milling laid the foundation for today's strong food processing industry in the area, which includes 122 plants. The largest food and beverage industry plant in the area is Gold N Plump Poultry Incorporated's poultry slaughtering plant in Cold Spring, Minnesota, which employs about 1,600 employees. Gold N Plump has two other plants in the area.

Other notable industries in the area include the power industry with 69 plants; the metals & minerals industry with 59 plants; the chemical industry, with 32; and the pulp & paper industry, with 32. In the power industry, Xcel Energy Incorporated has a substantial presence in the area, with 29 facilities (power plants, electrical substations, and natural gas storage facilities). Xcel Energy subsidiary, Northern States Power Company, produces a total of 6,519 megawatts of electricity in the 100-mile radius around Minneapolis.

To gain access to these plants including contact, phone numbers, and addresses see Industrialinfo.com's Midwest Online Plant Directory.