Goya Foods CEO and President Bob Unanue shot down a recent published report that the Jersey City-based Hispanic food company was close to being sold.
“Goya has a longstanding policy of not responding to rumors; however, the company is not for sale,” he said in a statement released to ROI-NJ. “We are flattered, of course, that anyone would be interested in owning (such) an iconic brand and business as ours.
“Our plans for our incredible Goya family is to continue this legacy into the future, even more successfully, for generations to come.”
On Friday, the New York Post reported the company was nearing a deal to be acquired for $3.5 billion by the Carlyle Group, a Washington, D.C.-based global investment firm.
A Goya spokesperson said the company did not have a comment on the part of the report that said Goya had hired Goldman Sachs earlier this year to explore a potential sale.
Goya was founded in New York City in 1936 by Don Prudencio Unanue and his wife, Carolina, both of whom were from Spain. It moved to New Jersey in 1974.
The company has grown to be the largest Hispanic-owned food company in the country and bills itself as the premier source for authentic Latino cuisine. Its products can be found in grocery stores from coast to coast and in much of the world, thanks to 26 facilities throughout the United States, Puerto Rico, the Dominican Republic and Spain, and it employs more than 4,000 worldwide.
Goya has long been one of the most important companies in the state. In 2011, it received an $80 million tax credit from the state to stay in the state — and add jobs.
In 2015, Goya opened a new headquarters in Jersey City as part of a $250 million investment that included a 600,000-square-foot warehouse for distribution and 42,000-square-foot corporate office. It also renovated a 240,000-square-foot production facility in Secaucus, where it was previously headquartered.
