Small manufacturers are the backbone of southwest Minnesota’s economy

By Bob Kill, Enterprise Minnesota

MINNEAPOLIS — When most Minnesotans think about manufacturing, they likely visualize big companies like 3M or Schwan’s. These are great companies, to be sure, but they represent only a tiny fraction of Minnesota’s manufacturers. The vast majority are small and medium size businesses.

Consider this: According to Minnesota’s Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED), more than 8,000 manufacturing companies make their corporate homes in Minnesota and only 22 of them employ more than 1,000 people. More than half employ fewer than 20 people. Plus, only 44 percent are located within the seven-county Twin Cities metro area. Smaller manufacturers play a vital role in southwest Minnesota where they invariably serve as the economic backbone of local communities.

Continue for illuminating facts about manufacturing in the 18 counties in the Southwest Initiative Foundation region.