Largest Hispanic-owned food company unveils sculpture of founder

 

POSTED ON Oct 31, 2018

 

Goya Foods, the largest Hispanic owned food company in the United States, unveiled a sculpture of Don Prudencio Unanue in celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month.

The sculpture was designed and created by Maritza Hernandez, a Cuban born, Chicago-based artist and sculptor. The three-foot bronze sculpture of Don Prudencio Unanue sits on a four-foot granite base and is planted at the front entrance of the national headquarters of Goya Foods in Jersey City.

Don Prudencio’s entrepreneurial spirit and marketing insight led him to create the most recognizable Latin food brand in the United States.

According to the statement, the history and story of Goya are as much about the importance of family and values, as it is about achieving the American dream and helping to cultivate the Latin culture and culinary landscape in the United States.

“For generations to come, this sculpture will serve not just as a reminder of our grandfather’s extraordinary life and legacy, but as an inspiration to all of us that through hard work and dedication the American dream is possible,” said Bob and Peter Unanue, president and executive vice president of Goya Foods, and grandchildren of Don Prudencio Unanue.

In 1904, Don Prudencio Unanue left Spain for Puerto Rico at the age of 18. Like many immigrants, he left behind his home and risked it all to find better opportunities and a new horizon for his life. He met his wife Carolina in Puerto Rico, who also left Spain, and together they moved to New York City to find work and to study. In 1936, during the Spanish Civil War, they started Goya in a small storefront on Duane Street in Lower Manhattan.

Driven by the belief that there was a growing consumer market for high-quality, fresh tasting Latin foods, they began catering to local Hispanic families by distributing authentic Spanish products including olives, olive oil, and sardines.