Goya Foods chief Robert Unanue has said he will not ‘apologise’ for supporting Donald Trump despite threats of a product boycott. 

Unanue called Trump’s leadership a ‘blessing’ at a Rose Garden event at the White House on Thursday.

He said: “We are all truly blessed, at the same time, to have a leader like President Trump who is a builder.”

Soon after #BoycottGoya, #GoyaFoods and #Goyaway were trending on Twitter, and loyal customers including politicians and celebrities expressed their anger over his comments. 

The popular food company was founded by Spanish immigrants Don Prudencio Unanue and his wife Carolina in New York City in 1936 and is now the largest Hispanic-owned food company in the US. 

Democratic congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez wrote: “Oh look, it’s the sound of me Googling “how to make your own Adobo.”

American composer and Hamilton Broadway director Lin-Manuel Miranda said: “We learned to bake bread in this pandemic, we can learn to make our own adobo con pimienta. Bye.”

Model Chrissy Teigen also weighed in on the controversy, adding: “F***K. A shame. Don’t care how good the beans taste though. Bye bye.”

Former Democratic presidential candidate Julian Castro said: “@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.”

Unanue has now defended himself and said he will not ‘apologise’ for his comments. 

In an interview with Fox News on Friday, when asked by host Brian Kilmeade if he was facing a boycott, said: "It's suppression of speech.

"You're allowed to talk good or talk praise to one president but you're not -when I was called to be part of this commission to aid in economic and educational prosperity and you make a positive comment, all the sudden that's not acceptable.

“I'm not apologising for saying - and especially when you're called by the president of the United States - you're gonna say, 'no, I'm sorry I'm busy no thank you?”

Donald Trump has since supported Unanue, writing on Twitter: “I LOVE @GoyaFoods!”

Goya Foods tweeted: “Goya continues to work for the prosperity & education of our country!  #GOYAGIVES two million pounds of food to food banks across the nation who are in desperate need of food for families impacted by COVID19.”