California Business New Brunswick Minister Greg Byrne shows off New Brunswick

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jim holt
For the telegraph-journal

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LOS ANGELES - A wee gold box sat in front of every Los Angeles businessman at the luncheon.

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Business New Brunswick Minister Greg Byrne, left, Canada’s new consul general, David Fransen and Carlos Valderrama, right, chairman of International Trade and Investment gather after a luncheon hosted by the Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce, Monday.

For the handpicked crowd, it was as much like unwrapping treasure as the delegation of New Brunswick promoters could have hoped.

After all, that's what they wanted.

That's why Business New Brunswick Minister Greg Byrne and his entourage travelled more than 6,000 kilometers, bringing the economy on one coast to one of the largest state economies on the other coast.

They came to Los Angeles to do business and they wanted their guests to leave Monday's luncheon, hosted by the Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce, having found treasure.

The gold-coloured box contained four bite-sized New Brunswick-made chocolates, a dime-sized provincial lapel pin and a copper-colored booklet, which unfolded into a panorama of colorful scenes depicting New Brunswick's industry and innovation.

Byrne opened the booklet - titled Tell The Story - and explained the bright future of his province to news-weary Americans still reeling from daily reports of record foreclosures, billion-dollar bankruptcies and unprecedented bailouts.

They wanted to hear a fairy tale, or at least something that promised a happy ending.

Byrne's tale began with: "Many large programs are happening in New Brunswick."

And it was as good as good news gets for the captains of Los Angeles industry, who were already wearing their lapel pin gifts and picking at their lunch - dice-sized cubes of chicken on a salad centered with half an avocado.

They had just been treated to a full course of slide-and-tape show images on a big screen depicting a thriving diverse New Brunswick economy - everything from Sabian cymbals to McCain French fries, advanced mapping software made by CARIS to video lottery terminals made by Spielo.

The delegation unveiled a cornucopia of goods and services.

The American ears perked up, however, at the mention of reassuring oil news.

"Irving Oil has the largest refinery in Canada," Byne told them.

"We're looking at building our second refinery. Right now we produce 300,000 barrels of oil a day.

"That means six out of every 10 cars in New England run on New Brunswick oil."

That ratio, he told them, would likely only increase once the new refinery is up and running.

Several times Byrne mentioned New Brunswick's commitment to pursuing nuclear energy.

"How much would it cost to buy 200 acres of land for a wind farm in New Brunswick?" asked Piazza Europa entrepreneur Renato Romano, who runs a design center showcasing the marble he imports.

Byrne assured Romano 200 acres would be very affordable and directed him to talk after lunch to a real estate member of his team.

"I can tell you that the land is two-thirds below the Canadian average," Byrne said.

Patrick S. Cole, relationship manager with GBC International Bank, and a Canadian who emigrated to the United States, asked him about film industry incentives.

"Our film industry would be considered fairly modest by Hollywood standards," he answered.

"We have a modest system of tax credits. When it comes to film tax incentives, it becomes a game of one-up-manship between the provinces."

Byrne stayed married to a handful of themes in his sales pitch: New Brunswick's push for less reliance on federal funds, energy innovation and a diversity of burgeoning industries exploiting new technologies.

"Our goal is to buoy our economy so that we're not dependent on any federal transfers," he said.

Byrne's reassuring story of trade and "renewed spirit of Atlantic co-operation" allayed at least some fears over worsening woes on Wall Street - at least until the dessert arrived.

Less than an hour later Carlos Valderrama, chairman of International Trade & Investment, ushered Byrne to the podium with little fanfare but with flourish fit for knights riding in from a nearby land, the business minister did not disappoint his hosts.

He arrived holding high the elixir of "mutually beneficial trade" and fielding at least one abrupt question about Free Trade, saying: "NAFTA has been good for both countries and has provided many opportunities for goods and to travel freely back and forth."

And, as he closed the cover on his Tell the Story booklet, Byrne had to face at least one question about the dragon still to be slain - specifically, a question about the meltdown this past month on Wall Street and how to get out of a mess that must surely affect Canada.

"In certain sectors, it is bound to have an impact," Byrne told the group.

But, as chamber members put their napkins on their plates and grabbed their wee gold-colored boxes, Byrne left them with words they longed to hear.

"In the last 10 years, New Brunswick has balanced budgets and had record surpluses," he said, adding with high enthusiasm.

"We have many public/private partnerships."

The group left happy, having been shown the lighted path out of a sagging economy, at least one path that leads to New Brunswick.