ORONO (AP) – The Maritime and Atlantic provinces of Canada are again making a pitch for Maine businesses to look to Canada to expand after more than a decade of economic growth – and companies are interested.

More than 45 people attended the fourth annual “Canada Day: Regional Opportunities in the International Northeast” Thursday. The majority of attendees were Maine businesses or economic developers that wanted to get information about selling products across the border.

The sales pitch? To get both American companies to look to “traditional historic trade patterns” and help Maritime and Atlantic provinces look to Maine and other New England states as a place for investment.

Allan Shaw, chairman and chief executive officer of The Shaw Group, a natural resources manufacturer based in Halifax, Nova Scotia, said that of the top 100 companies in Atlantic Canada, 45 percent export to other countries. And because of the North American Free Trade Agreement of 1993, which eliminated or reduced tariffs on cross-border trade, Canada has found a marketplace in the United States.

More than $4.1 billion in merchandise, primarily energy products, is traded between Canada and Maine, according to the Canadian Embassy. Businesses north of the border want Maine and other New England states to do more.

Each of the representatives at the fourth annual “Canada Day: Regional Opportunities in the International Northeast” gave presentations on how various industries and policies have improved provinces’ economies in the last decade.

Some said Maine companies should consider joining in the success.

“If we can match Maine companies with companies in New Brunswick or Atlantic Canada and focus them on growth and expansion, we’re all going to benefit,” said Neil Jacobsen, chief operating officer of Enterprise Saint John, an economic development group in Saint John, New Brunswick.

Carolyn Hamm, co-owner of Galt Block Warehouse Co. Inc. in Bangor, said her warehouse and distribution business would like more clients from the Maritimes and Atlantic Canada.

In 2002, Galt Block laid off 80 of its 106 employees because of a reduction in business from Georgia-Pacific Co. of Old Town.

With a new refrigeration and freezer storage unit, Galt Block on Thursday was making connections with economic developers from Canada who could put the Bangor company in touch with manufacturers and truckers north of the border.

“It’s all part of the picture,” Hamm said.

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Information from: Bangor Daily News, http://www.bangornews.com

AP-ES-02-04-05 0216EST

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