ENROLLED
2016 Regular Session
HOUSE RESOLUTION NO. 3
BY REPRESENTATIVES SCHEXNAYDER AND PRI CE
A RESOLUTION
To recognize St. James Parish as the Perique Tobacco Capital of the World.
WHEREAS, St. James Parish is one of Louisiana's nineteen original parishes created
on March 31, 1807, by an act of the territorial legislature; and
WHEREAS, St. James Parish is part of the Mississippi River Acadian Coast, which
was settled by Acadians in 1776; and
WHEREAS, St. James Parish is often called the Gem of the Mississippi River, and
its people pride themselves on their unique culture and heritage; and
WHEREAS, St. James Parish is the only cultivation site in the world for Perique
tobacco, a rare leaf type on which a special pressure-fermentation process is used; it was
introduced in 1824 by Acadian exile and farmer Pierre Chenet, nicknamed "Perique"; and
WHEREAS, Coralie Decareau, the granddaughter of "Perique" Chenet, and Celestin
Poche wed in 1829 and planted the generational seeds that grew into a rich family tradition
of cultivating and processing Perique tobacco to this day; and
WHEREAS, often considered the truffle of pipe tobaccos, Perique tobacco is used
as an ingredient in nearly a hundred different brand-name pipe tobaccos around the world;
it is coveted for its strong, powerful, sweet, and fruity aroma, and St. James Parish is the
world's sole source of Perique tobacco; and
WHEREAS, the wonderful properties of Perique tobacco allow for a variety of uses,
including in cigarettes, cigars, and a French liquor; and
WHEREAS, while most Louisiana Perique tobacco is cultivated by the Poche,
Martin, LeBlanc, Roussel, and Gravois farming families in or near Grand Pointe, Louisiana,
fewer than fifty acres of this crop remain in cultivation; this special tobacco's unique roots
in this robust and fertile ground make St. James Parish worthy of recognition as the Perique
Tobacco Capital of the World.
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THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the House of Representatives of the
Legislature of Louisiana does hereby recognize St. James Parish as the Perique Tobacco
Capital of the World and does hereby accord the farmers of this exclusive crop and its
related industries in St. James Parish the honor and esteem they are due.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a suitable copy of this Resolution be transmitted
to St. James Parish President Timmy Roussel and the St. James Parish Council.
SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
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