The board of Goya Foods voted to censure its CEO and require clearance for any future political remarks, after he drew negative attention for statements in favor of former president Donald Trump.
Robert Unanue, CEO of the firm his family owns, has made several public comments indicating he shares Trump’s belief that the 2020 presidential election was stolen from him. The latest was on Jan. 20, when he said on Fox Business that President Biden’s victory was “unverified.”
As a result, a majority of the private company’s nine-member board voted to require him to get their permission for any future public statements on the subject. Unanue, for his part, told the New York Post he intends to tone it down: “Independently, I’ve made the decision to lower the temperature and walk away from speaking about politics and religion.”
Goya, the largest Hispanic-owned U.S. food company, had been the subject of political rancor since last summer, when Unanue said America was “truly blessed” with a Trump presidency. Trump opponents declared a boycott of Goya products; supporters tried to organize a counter-effort to support Goya that included first daughter Ivanka Trump posing on social media with a can of Goya beans.
