Jim Jensen, the former general counsel for Salt Lake-based NPS Pharmaceuticals, said Canada is often overlooked by Utah companies, which instead first look to major biopharmaceutical companies on the East Coast and in Europe.

"I wouldn't diminish the importance of visiting with them," Jensen said. "But if you are looking for a partnership that can build a base, I think there are major opportunities in the Canadian biotech and pharmaceutical sector."

In 1999, when Jensen was working for NPS Pharmaceuticals, the company acquired Allelix, a biotech firm located outside of Toronto.

"They had products that were a bit more mature than ours," Jensen said. "We acquired some very important product opportunities from them. That company, I think, is on the cusp of becoming a major biotech pharmaceutical company."

Michael Fine, Canada's consul general in Denver, said the top concern of small bioscience companies is cash.

"Developing new life science products and services is enormously expensive and time consuming," Fine said. "And most of these companies are startups that are small, and frankly they can't afford to do it alone."

Scott Parker, Canada's newly appointed honorary consul of Utah, said more symposiums will be forthcoming, encompassing other industries like energy.

"I think companies are very anxious to share with each other," Parker said. "They're looking for partners because they can't do everything in the beginning."

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E-mail: danderton@desnews.com