Editing Port Colborne (section)

==Economy==
Maritime commerce, including supplying goods to the camps for the labourers who worked on the first canal, ship repair and the provisioning trade, was, and still is, an important part of Port Colborne's economy. Like other cities in the region, Port Colborne was a heavily industrial city throughout most of the early 20th century because of its proximity to the [[hydroelectric]] power of [[Niagara_Falls#Hydroelectric_power|Niagara Falls]]. A [[grain elevator]], two modern [[gristmill|flour mills]],<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.adm.com/en-US/worldwide/canada/Pages/default.aspx|title=Archer Daniels Midland - ADM|date=July 31, 2017|website=ADM|access-date=July 31, 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.robinhood.ca/rh.timeline.asp?lid=1|title=- Robin Hood®|website=www.robinhood.ca|access-date=July 31, 2017|archive-date=August 1, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170801045632/http://www.robinhood.ca/rh.timeline.asp?lid=1|url-status=dead}}</ref> a [[nickel]] [[Refining (metallurgy)|refinery]],<ref name=vale1/> a [[cement|cement plant]] operated by [[Canada Cement Company|Canada Cement]], and a [[blast furnace]] operated by [[Algoma Steel]] were all major employers.

As recently as 2017, Port Colborne has been successful attracting new industry, such as the agro-business operations of Casco Inc.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.casco.ca/|title=Canada - English|website=www.casco.ca|access-date=July 31, 2017}}</ref> and Jungbunzlauer,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.jungbunzlauer.com|title=Jungbunzlauer|first=Jungbunzlauer Suisse|last=AG|website=www.jungbunzlauer.com|access-date=July 31, 2017}}</ref> which process corn into products such as sweeteners and citric acid.

The [[Vale Inco|International Nickel Company (now Vale)]] has long been one of the city's main employers, since a [[World War I]] scandal prompted the opening of a refinery in 1918.<ref name="cmj1">{{cite news |last1=Sandlos |first1=John |title=The Big Nickel scandal of 1916 |url=https://www.canadianminingjournal.com/featured-article/the-big-nickel-scandal-of-1916/ |publisher=Canadian Mining Journal |date=24 June 2024}}</ref> Taking advantage of inexpensive [[hydroelectricity]] from generating stations at nearby [[Niagara Falls]], from 1922 the refinery produced [[electrolytic]] nickel and [[Platinum group]] metals.<ref name="thompson60">{{cite book |last1=Thompson |first1=John Fairfield |last2=Beasley |first2=Norman |title=For the Years to Come: A Story of International Nickel of Canada |date=1960 |publisher=Longmans, Green & Co |location=Toronto}}</ref> It grew to employ over 2,000 workers by the 1950s. Cutbacks in operations and increasing factory automation have reduced the workforce to its present-day (2018) total of 170.<ref name=vale1>{{cite web|url=http://www.vale.com/canada/EN/business/mining/nickel/vale-canada/port-colborne/Pages/default.aspx|title=Vale Port Colborne |date=2018 |website=www.vale.com |access-date=July 31, 2018}}</ref>

'''Marine Recycling Corporation''' is a ship recycling firm, boasting of Green (environmentally friendly) services, located next to the [[Welland Canal]] at [[Gravelly Bay]] and operating since the 1970s.
<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.marinerecycling.ca/page/company/services/|title=Vale Port Colborne|date=2018|website=MRC|access-date=July 31, 2018}}</ref>

A 2012 report indicates the following as the largest private sector employers, with a staff of over 50, in Port Colborne at that time:<ref>{{cite web|url=http://portcolborne.ca/page/top_employers|title=TOP 15 PRIVATE SECTOR EMPLOYERS IN PORT COLBORNE|website=City of Port Colborne|access-date=July 31, 2018|archive-date=August 1, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180801190147/http://portcolborne.ca/page/top_employers|url-status=dead}}</ref>

* Port Colborne Poultry (Pinty's Delicious Foods, now owned by Olymel), 229 employees	
* Vale Canada Limited, 200	
* J. Oskam Steel Fabricators Ltd., 150
* IMT Partnership, 108	
* ADM Milling, 95	
* Thurston Machine Co. Ltd., 85	
* JTL Machine Ltd., 78	
* Jungbunzlauer Canada Inc., 74 
* Brennan Paving Ltd., 70
* Ingredion Canada Inc., 70