Goya Foods has backed out of its sponsorship of the National Puerto Rican Day Parade — but it won’t spill the beans on exactly why.
“It was a business decision,” company spokesman Rafael Toro told the Daily News on Tuesday. “We make business decisions all the time.”
Toro declined to elaborate on the surprise withdrawal after six decades of support, but he said it applied to “one year, this year.”
Parade organizers were stunned by the decision of New Jersey-based company.
“We are very disappointed at Goya for pulling out of our parade via a phone call and with no rationale other than ‘it was a business decision,’ ” they said in a statement.
“After a 60-year partnership, we would expect to, at the very least, discuss this very serious matter face-to-face,” the statement said. “In the end, Goya is jeopardizing the parade’s commitment to 100 college and college-bound students who stood to receive parade scholarships.”
Remaining sponsors for the 60th Annual Puerto Rican Day Parade set to stream down Fifth Ave. on June 11 include AT&T, Coca Cola, The New York Yankees and The News.
