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SUSTA Makes Magic
Small Louisiana Spice Business now in 45 Countries
The late Chef Paul Prudhomme was more than an entrepreneur; he was a culinary diplomat and one of the first celebrity chefs. A Louisiana native, Prudhomme worked in kitchens across the country before opening K-Paul’s Louisiana Kitchen with his wife K in New Orleans’ French Quarter in 1979. The restaurant became famous for their unique spice blends, and Prudhomme was known for sending customers home with packets of spices upon request. A natural businessman, in 1982 Prudhomme started making the spice blends in a separate facility and created a retail line – Cajun Magic, later becoming known worldwide as Magic Seasoning Blends.
Roughly four years later, Magic Seasonings Blends joined SUSTA and started promoting their spice blends using the Branded program (now named CostShare) to receive 50% reimbursement of their international promotions. They began by exhibiting at the ANUGA trade show in Germany, followed the next year by SIAL Paris. “We never could have afforded those trade shows and the travel without the assistance of SUSTA,” said Anna Zuniga, Vice President, International Sales and Marketing. Once Europe was underway, they exhibited at the Gulfood trade show and opened up the Middle East. SUSTA’s Generic program ramped up in the mid-1990s, and Magic Seasoning Blends started exhibiting in SUSTA pavilions at trade shows and participating in trade missions. They now ship retail and food service products to 45 countries – all with the help of SUSTA. “If we wanted to explore a new market, the first thing we would do is go to the SUSTA website and see what events were taking place. We still do this,” said Zuniga.
Now, Magic Seasoning Blends uses the CostShare program to support their international business in new ways. You might see a van in Turkey wrapped in Magic Seasoning Blends imagery, or a billboard in Kuwait. “It is amazing how it has taken off. Exports are the fastest growing segment of our business, and that all started with SUSTA. SUSTA was the seed,” said Zuniga. “During COVID, when business was shifting to more home cooks, we received an email from SUSTA reminding us of all the ways we can use the Branded program. From then, we started using the program to create foreign labels for our retail packaging, instead of just using stickers. Now that is part of our business model, and it is all because of SUSTA.”
The 25-year relationship of Magic Seasoning Blends and SUSTA exemplifies the meaningful impact that the USDA’s Foreign Agricultural Service’s Market Access Program can have on a small business. “With 115 employees, our products are on every continent!”
