, We're Really Cookin' Cajun

Larrys Micbanä, press secretary, Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry, Baton Rouge, LA The Cajun phenomenon is the marke- many of the melting pot influences of ter's dream come true. It has been an with its French, Spanish, American classic: the rags-to-riches and African heritage. success story. Cajun is usually referred to as The success of Louisiana Cajun's "poor country folks" fare, derived marketing story has been part happy from the trapping, hunting, fishing, accident, part the and pro- and small farming legacy of its fore- motional talents of Paul bears. Creole is a more sophisticated Prudhomme—and since his initial offering and usually includes some breakthrough, the cooking and type of tomato portion. It results from showmanship of numerous other the cooking styles of the commingled Louisiana chefs—part awareness by wealthy French and Spanish in New private and government leaders of a Orleans in the pre-Cajun era in Loui- good business opportunity, and part siana. Both include the "" recognition and appreciation by those of finely chopped onions, celery, and outside Louisiana's borders of a herit- green peppers. age and cooking unique to America: Many have as their base stock the Cajun food, as cooked by Cajuns, is "." A roux is a delicious. without which many Cajun/Creole dishes would be little more than a Origin of Louisiana Food . Cajun cook Alton Pitre calls the roux a "controlled burning of Prudhomme didn't start Cajun cook- and oil—equal parts of both." ing, of course. That began 225 years Although simple in concept, the roux ago in the swamps and bayous of is critical and if not stirred constantly south Louisiana as a small colony of and attended to with precision, it exiled French families from Nova Sco- becomes a charred mess in the bot- tia (then Acadia) known as tom, of the skillet. To the base ingre- Acadians—colloquially, Cajuns— dients add wild game, the vast array struggled to make a new life in a of freshwater and marine seafood, strange land. But Prudhomme, seasonings, and vegetables available directly descended from that group, in Louisiana, and . The resuk is did begin, and kept fueling, the mad- Cajun food in its many cap media blitz and promotional manifestations. tours that catapulted Cajun to the forefront as the preeminent cooking aaze of this decade. Cajun Chef Prudhomme Starts Craze Prudhomme consistently refers to his food as "Louisiana food" Although Prudhomme ticks off a ser- Although Louisiana food is best ies of events in the late 1970's and known as Cajun, it also includes its early 1980's as significant along the big-city first cousin, Creole, which has way to making Cajun a household

286 I Marketing U.S. ^Hculture word, for him it started years earlier. For 12 years Prudhomme tramped Other Chefs Promote Cajun through the kitchens of America's res- Cooking taurants. Along the way, he soaked up Part of Louisiana's Cajun heritage is the food types, cooking styles, and that cooking is not confined to the food industry hype that were all to female in the household. Many Cajun figure in what today is a multimillion- men cook and cook well, and serve dollar food industry business for him- as role models for their sons, handing self and his Louisiana Cajun down the heritage through the gener- contemporaries. ations. When Prudhomme broke In 1982, he started his own line of through the State's boundaries, many produrts, "Cajun Magic." In 1983, he excellent Cajun cooks and chefs were did blackened redfish for New York waiting for the opportunity to show Times food critic Craig Claibome's their culinary art. birthday party. There was a huge The common denominator of the media turnout. Several chefs were most successful chefs is a willingness cooking for the affair, but "All of a to take their cooking to the public. As sudden this smell .started coming roving ambassadors for the ta.ste of from my side of the room. People Cajun they have covered the globe in started tasting blackened redfish and the 1980's. the whole attitude changed. It was the hit of the party."

Paul Prudhomme didn 't start Cajun cooking, but, as a descendent of those that did some 225 years ago, he has helped catapult Cajun to the forefront as the preeminent cooking craze of this decade. (Restaurants & Institutions Magazine)

ihvtnoHng Agricultural Products 287 chef Buster Ambrosia was asked by dozen Louisiana food manufacturers the Louisiana Department of Agricul- who, according to Glen Senk, operat- ture to cook for the 1986 annual ing vice president of Bloomingdale's, meeting of the Lions Club Interna- "otherwise would never have had the tional in Taiwan. "We cooked for chance to reach this type of major thousands of people—Lions Clubs national market." from all over Europe, the Middle East, Far East, you name it. During our stay Cookbooks a Marketing Tool we prepared a total of 135 dishes. We took more than 2,000 pounds of spi- While personal appearances got the ces, seasonings, , and other fledgling Cajun food industry off the ingredients as well as our crawfish, ground, cookbooks are probably the crabmeat, and red snapper and added single largest marketing factor keep- them to some of the seafood they had ing the food style before the public. over there. We introduced a cuisine Almost all of Louisiana's celebrity to people from all over the world in chefs have branched out into the that one spot. People had heard a lot cookbook business and acknowledge about it, but they had never had a that selling cookbooks is a major bus- chance to taste it." iness enterprise. Currently scores of Louisiana chefs In January 1988, one Baton Rouge are making personal appearances bookstore had 53 Louisiana cook- aaoss the country and around the books, many in their ñfth or more world. John Poise is another of Loui- printing. Some were multiple efforts siana's premier celebrity chefs who by a single chef Wilson had four; was permitted to open the only Amer- Prudhomme, two. Chef Paul Prud- ican restaurant in Moscow during the bomme's Louisiana Kitcbenwâs in its 1988 Reagan-Gorbachev summit talks 50th printing. The book has won a and recently started a line of prepared number of major awards in the cook- Cajun products tailored to the Euro- ing field and since its publication in pean market. One of Poise's first big 1984 has sold more than 700,000 breaks came in 1985 when he was copies. Three versions of "River invited to Hollywood by 20th Century Road," the No. 1 best selling com- Pox to cook for a party for Cybill munity cookbook in the country pub- Shepherd. Since then, he has done lished since 1959 by the Baton Rouge additional Shepherd-instigated craw- Junior League, were available, but fish cookouts for some of Holly- most were a compilation of the cook- wood's biggest names. "And while ing expertise and recipes of a single we're cooking we also give them a lit- chef tle Cajun and Creole culture and his- Cookbook sales not only reach the toiy lesson.'* homemaker/cook, family, and One of the largest gatherings of friends, but also spawn media book Louisiana chefs to promote Cajun was reviews. Prudhomme says, "There at Bloomingdale's flagship store in was a span of about 3 years when it Manhattan during June and July, 1986. seemed like every writer who came Prudhomme, Poise, and seven other to my restaurant or wrote about my Louisiana chefs made personal book tried to write a better article appearances in a kickoff event which about it than the guy before him." included much of the New York media. Free Media Exposure The 2-month promotion, spon- sored by the Louisiana Department of Aside from Wilson's appearances on Agriculture, featured some three PBS, cookbooks, and media accounts

288 I Marketing U.S. Agriculture One of the greatest marketers of Louisiana Cajun is Justin Wilson. In his folksy Cajun country dialect in Tangipahoa Parish, Wilson reaches across America each week on public television with his show "Justin Wilson's Louisiana Cookin' Outdoors. "(WLPBTV, Baton Rouge, LA) of personal appearances, countless Claibome and Dan Rather to thou- other print and air time has been sands of pieces in local media in the given to Cajun in the 1980's. As Prud- farthest reaches of America. homme points out, people hurried to write or broadcast the cutest, most Food Shows elearifying, best quotable quote extolling the virtues of Cajun. The While Louisiana chefs have been the reams of material range from Craig most visible component of Cajun,

Promoting Agricultural Products I 289 many behind-the-scenes efforts insure crowds in Los Angeles and San that Cajun continues to have staying Francisco. power and makes the transition from Two of the top ten pop albums of temporary fad to permanent trend. 1987 featured a new musical hybrid Among these has been the work of fijsing basic rock with authentic the marketing staff of the Louisiana Cajun/Creole music. "The Lonesome Department of Agriculture. Aside Jubilee" album by John Cougar Mel- from hosting media promotional lencamp features accordion and fid- events, the marketing specialists have dle on each track. And Paul Simon's attended some 50 food shows all over Grammy-award winning pop album the world in the 1980's selling Louisi- "Graceland" featured two Zydeco ana Cajun. songs. The major food buying decisions Jimmy Bulliard, Sr., founder of by the large restaurant and super- Cajun Chef Produas in St. Martinville, market chains here and abroad are recalls the furor in 1958 when he made at food shows, where those sel- came out with his product line. 'You ling their products staff booths hand- should have seen the letter writing ing out literature, providing demon- campaign people started to the local strations, and taking orders from paper. People felt Cajun was degrad- interested brokers. ing. 'Shame on us,' they said. They The number of products available said we should call it Acadian or for sale at these food events has Creole, anything but Cajun." mushroomed in the last 6 years. The Bulliard persevered with his "Cajun Louisiana Department of Commerce Chef line of hot , cayenne estimates that more than 100 new peppers, file, pickled peppers, Louisiana companies in the 1980's and others and is now one of the were geared to the Cajun food venerable ancestors of Cajun food. market. His product line has had a steady, gradual increase through the years. Pride in Cajun Culture Lie markets through brokers and dis- tributors while attending trade food But the existence of a Cajun culture shows sponsored by a specific groc- on which to predicate the Cajun food ery chain. industry was in jeopardy only a few His concerns about long-term via- short generations ago. As recently as bility are echoed by a number of the 1930's and 1940's, Cajun children other Cajun food producers. "There were caned at school for speaking are too many getting into it. Down their native Cajun French. The idea the road, some of them are not going was to become American—speak to be able to stay." English. Fortunately, there has been a The elder in the Cajun-related renaissance of pride. They now take Louisiana food business is B.F. Trap- immense pride in their French herit- pey's Sons, Inc., founded in 1898. age as seen in a revival of their lan- Trappey*s has for generations been guage (a Cajun French dictionary^ was known to Louisianians for their recently published for the first time) canned yams, cut okra and tomatoes, and their music. black-eyed peas, and red kidney bean Cajun music, Creole Zydeco, and products, and a selection of hot sau- new styles that blend the two, featur- ces and peppers. ing the fiddle and accordion, are now Getting on the Cajun bandwagon, being heard nationwide. Last year Jack Blendeman, president of the Cajun-Zydeco festivals drew huge company, says that, although much of

290 1 MoHzeting US. Agriculture their product line is Cajun to the core Tony's sounded too much like pizza," in terms of ingredients, they only the elder Pizzolato said So they recently began marketing a specific settled on the name "Louisiana Fish line with the Cajun name titled Cajun Fry Products, Ltd."—a name he now Style Seafood Okra Gumbo, Cajun acknowledges has proved to be a Style Okra Gumbo, and Cajun Style stroke of genius. Chicken Sausage Gumbo. "Anything with Louisiana or Cajun He says of the impact of Cajun, in it is going to sell these days," Cliff "Our business is growing sustantially says. Now the Pizzolatos have seven each week." Aside from food shows salespersons on the road nationwide. and work through distributors, his Their products are selling in 34 States. latest marketing angle is the U.S. mil- Their most popular sellers are the itary. Approached to develop a line to Cajun Mix, Cajun Etoufee go to military commissaries, he points Mix, Cajun Gumbo Mix, Cajun Hush out that 53 percent of military per- Puppy Mix, and Cajun Brown sonnel are from the South. He plans Mix. Last year the family bought the to make presentations of their prod- entire square block the original store uas to individual military purchasing was located on, and this year they districts here and overseas. have just completed the purchase of an adjoining square block needed to New Companies expand their manufacturing facilities. "Business has increased between Although a number of companies 50 and 75 percent each year since have been in business for years, many 1982," Cliff says. What marketing more are recent creations to take expertise do they use to launch a new advantage of the Cajun's newly found line, now numbering some 15 pro- fame such as the Pizzolato family's ducts? "We put our latest product up business. against what we think is our major Ten years ago, Tony Pizzolato and competitor," Cliff says. "We get at his five sons were in the seafood bus- least 150 customers coming through iness. "Tony's Seafood" was a small the store to try each in a blind taste takeout seafood store in Baton Rouge. test. .\nd we keep mixing and remix- The five sons were on the road, each ing it until we get at least 8 out of in his own truck, selling shrimp from every 10 customers to say they like the roadside in the Baton Rouge and our version best." Lafayette areas. After a heart attack Carroll Thomas is another des- sidelined the father, several of the cendent of the original Acadians. sons came back to run the store while Although his product line numbers Tony recuperated. While convalesc- just two items, Cajun Power Garlic ing, son Cliff says, "Dad began pid- Sauce and Cajun Power Spicy Hot dling around with some of the fish fry Sauce, they are selling from Alaska to mixes he had been making for us at Singapore to Europe. home for years and we began selling "I've gone from zero business to it through the store." distribution in 65 percent of the Uni- As requests for the fish fry mix ted States without spending a dollar mounted through word-of-mouth on advertising," Thomas says. His ad\^ertising, Tony decided to have art break came when he w^as asked to do work done on a packaged product. a cooking demonstration in Same Fe And then the name changed. for actress Jessica Lange. A local res- "There was a Tony's Shoe Shop taurant there kept a botde of his gar- down the street and a Tony's Donut lic sauce on their tables where a Cali- Shop across the way. And, besides.

Promoting Agricultural Products | 291 fornia food critic for Metropolitan He is in one warehouse in Dallas //om^ magazine tried it. and handled by four small distribu- A story in the magazine praising tors in Illinois as well as in several the sauce led to "thousands and specialty shops in New Orleans. But, thousands of orders," which resulted Pitre says, "It's hard to sell a one- in samples of the sauce being fea- product line. If the bigger stores are tured on the television series "Hour going to carry something, they want a Magazine," where it was touted by complete line of produas. They want the show host Gary Collins as "my all- to buy a complete package from one time favorite." supplier. Less bookkeeping, less "I chose the 'Gajun Power' name headaches all around." before Cajun really got out of the Cajun area and it's been dynamite. It's Tourism Advertising Promotes a case of we always knew how good Cajun Food our food was but we kept it to our- selves. Now everybody wants it. " Figures on the dollar impact of Cajun outside the borders of the State are not available. Neither are the exact Not All Success Stories sales figures on Cajun food products. Not all of the Cajun entrepreneurs, Bruce Morgan, director of promotions however, have been fortunate enough for the Louisiana Department of Cul- to get that lucky break that brought ture, Recreation, and Tourism, with their product to the attention of mil- an annual budget of $4.6 million, is lions of American consumers. responsible for developing the adver- Alton Pitre is one of the small tising material and placing the adver- Cajun entrepreneurs who, 4 years tising for the State's tourism industry. ago, started selling his own line of He says spending on foodservice in seasoning, "Pitre's Original Creole 1986 was in excess of $1 billion, or 27 Seasoning." percent of the tourist dollars spent in Pitre, cooking since the age of 11 the State by the 13 million visitors for his large family in Abbeville that year. because, "Mama was more productive Foodservice accounts for Louisia- in the field with the farm chores than na's largest travel-related payroll, I was," says of his venture into the totalling $252 million or 35 percent of Cajun business, "It has been tough, the State total. More than 37,000 Loui- real tough. I haven't lost any money sianians are employed in Louisiana on it, but I sure can't retire on it restaurants. either." Most of the State's tourism budget He had made his seasoning for 15 is aimed at paid ad\^ertising emphas- years before putting it on the market. izing Louisiana cuisine. The State "The problem is that there are 15 to promotes Cajun and Creole foods in 20 similar seasonings on the shelves publications nationwide. The primary in Louisiana now. It's a situation of if slogan used in the paid tourism they sell a case of mine it will be at advertising indicates where Cajun the expense of someone else's food ranks in the things Louisiana has product." to offer: "Louisiana, We're Really Cookin'."

292 I Marketing as. Agriculture