Goya Foods Facing Backlash After CEO Praises President Trump

“We’re all truly blessed at the same time to have a leader like President Trump, who is a builder, and that’s what my grandfather did,” the executive said. “He came to this country to build, to grow, to prosper. And so we have an incredible builder, and we pray for our leadership, our president, and we pray for our country that we will continue to prosper and to grow.”

Goya Foods, which touts itself as being the biggest Hispanic-owned company in the U.S., is a privately owned company out of Jersey City, NJ. It was founded in 1936 by Prudencio Unanue, who emigrated from Spain to Puerto Rico, and from there to New York.

Robert Unanue is the grandson of the founder, Prudencio, and is third-generation Unanue to run the family company of Goya.

Following the CEO’s praises of President Trump, hashtags such as #Goyaway and #BoycottGoya appeared on Twitter.

Several celebrities and politicians also took to Twitter to speak out and encourage a boycott of Goya, including Julian Castro, the former Secretary of Housing and Urban Development under the Obama administration, as well as Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York.

.@GoyaFoods has been a staple of so many Latino households for generations.

Now their CEO, Bob Unanue, is praising a president who villainizes and maliciously attacks Latinos for political gain. Americans should think twice before buying their products. #Goyaway https://t.co/lZDQlK6TcU

— Julián Castro (@JulianCastro) July 9, 2020