Goya Foods
Goya Foods is a prominent privately owned food production company founded in 1936 by Spanish immigrants Don Prudencio Unanue and Carolina Casal in New York City. Specializing in products for Latin American and Spanish cuisine, Goya has grown to become the largest Hispanic-owned food company in the United States. Following its relocation to Secaucus, New Jersey, in 1974, the company expanded its operations globally, establishing numerous facilities across the United States, Puerto Rico, the Dominican Republic, and Spain. Goya is well-known for providing a wide array of authentic Latin American food products, such as beans, condiments, and frozen foods, which resonate with both Hispanic and non-Hispanic consumers alike.
The company has also engaged in philanthropic efforts, contributing millions of pounds of food for disaster relief and supporting various community initiatives. Goya has faced controversies, particularly regarding the political statements of its CEO, Robert Unanue, which led to calls for boycotts and sparked dialogues about corporate responsibility and cultural representation. Despite these challenges, Goya Foods has maintained robust sales and continues to play a significant role in the food industry while promoting its commitment to cultural heritage and community support.
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Goya Foods
Company Information
- Date founded: 1936
- Industry: Food industry
- Corporate headquarters: Secaucus, New Jersey
- Type: Private
Overview
Goya Foods is a privately owned food production company specializing in products for Latin American and Spanish cuisine. Established in New York City in 1936 by Spanish immigrants, Goya moved to New Jersey in 1974 and became the largest Hispanic-owned food company in America. The company remained family-owned and built its business by providing authentic Latin American foods and ingredients that became popular with American consumers, including immigrants from Central and South America.
In the early 2000s, Goya Foods moved to expand its reach worldwide. This resulted in the establishment of more than two dozen facilities employing thousands in the United States (including Puerto Rico), the Dominican Republic, and Spain. In the early 2020s, the company became the subject of controversy and the object of attempted boycotts because of comments made by its president and chief executive officer (CEO) in support of President Donald Trump. Through its Goya Gives global initiative, the company often participates in philanthropy for populations in crisis.
History
Goya was started in 1936 by Don Prudencio Unanue and his wife, Carolina Casal. Unanue emigrated from Spain in 1903 when he was eighteen. He and Carolina, who had also emigrated from Spain, married in Puerto Rico in 1921 and later settled in New York City, where he became a broker for Spanish-imported foods. In 1936, the Spanish Civil War (1936-1939) cut off supply lines and threatened his business, so Unanue needed a new source of products.
Unanue purchased some Moroccan sardines, and he and Carolina found space in a Manhattan warehouse, where they repackaged the sardines for resale to stores. He paid the sardine supplier one dollar for the use of the name “Goya” and opened a storefront in Manhattan. Soon they added other products in demand by Spanish immigrants, such as olives and olive oil. These products proved popular enough that the Unanues began processing and packaging their own unique products instead of distributing products made by others. Goya Foods opened its first factory in the Bronx in 1958.
Following a surge in immigration from Latin America following the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965, demand rose in the United States for Latin American food products, creating new business opportunities for Goya. In 1974, the company established its headquarters in Secaucus, New Jersey. To add to its focus on quality ingredients, the company bought a Spanish olive farm that same year.
Unanue died in 1976, leaving the $8.5-million business to his four sons. The oldest son, Joseph A. Unanue, became the company’s chief operating officer (COO). Under his leadership, the company continued to expand until it produced hundreds of products, generating $700 million annually. These products continued to focus on items familiar to people from Latin American cultures, adding beans, condiments, beverages, and frozen foods to the canned fish, olives, and olive oil from the original product line.
In the 1990s, Goya Foods increased its visibility through advertising. When facing marketing challenges such as competitors with lower prices, Goya has been known to run commercials showing both products dumped out side-by-side, so consumers can compare them. This enabled the company to take on food industry giants such as Campbell’s, which created but soon folded its own line of Latin American foods. The company also engaged in active market research. It monitored what customers in different areas were purchasing and the countries of origin of new immigrants. This allowed it to adjust its product lines to provide familiar products that customers could relate to and, therefore, purchase.
A family feud between Unanue’s sons and some of his nephews landed the future of the company in the hands of the courts in the early part of the twenty-first century. However, the company ultimately remained in the family. Robert Unanue, the founder’s grandson, became CEO in 2004. Since then, the company added manufacturing and distribution centers in multiple American states as well as in Spain, Puerto Rico, and the Dominican Republic.
Impact
By the 2020s, Goya Foods had given its owners a net worth exceeding $1 billion, making the Unanue family one of the wealthiest Hispanic families in the US. The company itself became the country’s largest Hispanic-owned food company. Although it is focused on the needs of Hispanic and Latino customers, the company grew to have recognition among non-Hispanic or Latino Americans as well.
Some industry experts also credit the company with helping to make the US more welcoming to Latin American immigrants. Company sales representatives determine the homelands of immigrants in different areas and stock stores with the products that will seem most like home to them. They also advise store managers on which other non-Goya products, such as produce and cuts of meat, will be most appreciated by the local Latino population.
In 2000, Goya Foods became the first Hispanic or Latino company to be featured in a display at the Smithsonian Institute. The display recognized the Unanue family’s immigrant success story. It was featured in the museum during Hispanic Heritage Month from mid-September to mid-October.
Goya Foods has also engaged in numerous philanthropic efforts. The company website lists nearly three hundred local, regional, and national organizations that have received donations. Goya has donated millions of pounds of food to disaster relief efforts as well. In 2013, it took part in First Lady Michelle Obama’s “My Plate” program by creating MiPlato to encourage healthy eating in Latino families. At the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, Goya donated the equivalent of 170,000 meals in food and 20,000 masks to communities across America. After the February 2023 train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio, Goya sent food and disaster relief to the communities affected through its Goya Give global initiative.
The company has experienced several controversies over the years, in addition to the court fight for its ownership. In 2001, Goya made the news after three workers in Florida were fired, allegedly because they were engaging in labor union activities. Goya countered that they were creating a disturbance inside the company’s facility while in work uniforms. The company was fined for its anti-union practices.
In 2020, people discussed boycotting Goya Foods, especially on social media platforms. Robert Unanue offered praise to President Donald Trump after he signed an executive order to improve educational access for Latinos. This angered many Latinos, who objected to Trump’s immigration policies, and Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez called for a boycott. This sparked an opposing effort from Trump supporters to buy Goya products. Goya sales reportedly spiked so high that the company jokingly named Ocasio-Cortez its employee of the month. However, renewed calls for a Goya Foods boycott took place in early 2021 after Unanue spoke at the meeting of the Conservative Political Action Council (CPAC) and again praised Trump despite Trump's baseless claims of election fraud and alleged role in inciting the 2021 Capitol Riot. Despite the controversy, Unanue remained a fervent supporter of Trump during his successful 2024 campaign for president. In September 2024, Unanue published a book about his experiences with "cancel culture" and supporting Trump titled Blessed, Donald J. Trump, and the Spiritual War. In the mid-2020s, Goya continued to do well financially despite these controversies and expanded its operations to twenty-six facilities worldwide. Sales remained strong, and Goya continued to support myriad community initiatives in education, mental health, and abuse prevention. In 2024, Goya provided food and disaster relief to those affected by Hurricane Helene.
Bibliography
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