A previous post detailed events in 2020 and early 2021 in the Ministry of Rum in order to make the case that influential people in the rum industry have protected a brand called Velier from criticism. This post goes into additional detail on one issue referenced in that post, in order to strengthen the case that influential figures protected Velier, and show a financial incentive for doing so.
The subject of this post is the reaction to controversial statements by the CEO of Goya, and by Luca Gargano, the owner of Velier where they both praised Trump. Their similar stance on the same politician allows for an objective look at the reaction from the rum community and supports the idea that inducements play a role in how brands are perceived.
Context of their Support for Trump
The CEO of Goya Foods stood next to the President of the United States at the launch of an initiative meant to improve food security, and said that he considered the United States to be “truly blessed” to have Trump as the President of the country, calling him an “incredible builder”.
By contrast, Luca Gargano referred to Trump as “our only hope against digital slavery” in a series of statements where he equated being asked to wear a mask with being forced into chattel slavery, his promotion of a conspiracy theory alleging that the Covid 19 pandemic was planned, and his fantasies about underdevelopment and exploitation in the Caribbean.
Timing of their Support for Trump
The CEO of Goya praised Trump at a time when Trump was the President of the United States and they were working together on food security initiatives.
Luca Gargano’s praise for Trump emerged when Biden was President, the month after a group of Trump supporters stormed the White House in an act described as an armed insurrection. At this time, the majority of Republicans and right-leaning Americans, including those that voted for Trump twice now believed that this small minority of far-right Trump supporters represented a danger to Democracy. Gargano’s praise put him in the company of a small group of right-wing radicals.
Impact of a Boycott
Goya sells affordable products like black beans and coconut milk that are used in cuisine that are cherished parts of Caribbean and Latin American culture. These products are packaged in cans, giving them durability and a long shelf life. As such, the users of these products are usually Latin Americans, members of the Caribbean diaspora, and people experiencing food insecurity who rely on canned foods. Attempting to associate their food with fascism during a politically tense time puts Latin Americans, members of the Caribbean diaspora, and people experiencing food insecurity at risk of being assaulted by bad actors who justify violence by claiming to be against fascism.
Velier sells rum that often retails for several thousand dollars per bottle. The customers of this luxury product would not have faced any similar risk, and would have actually been able to use their tremendous privilege and power to ask for clarity on the potential exploitation in Haiti that was hinted at by Gargano.
Community Impact of Both Companies
Goya supports more than three hundred organizations through scholarships, disaster relief, and sponsorship of cultural events. They donate more than four million pounds of food annually and help preserve Latin American and Caribbean culture.
Luca Gargano has financially supported a range of people in the rum industry, which seems to have led to their refusal to criticize him and belief that they need to protect him. There is a clear difference in the reactions to Goya and Gargano from many influential figures in the rum industry who have received some inducement from Luca Gargano.
Jan Warren
Jan Warren contributed a column to Drinks International, which is the largest magazine dedicated to the global spirits, beer, and wine markets, and one of the most trusted and respected global drinks journals.
In a 2016 column, he wrote that he had been sharing his dislike for Trump over the bartop for months. With regard to the CEO of Goya supporting Trump, he said that a CEO supporting Trump is an “implicit endorsement for racism”, and that Latin Americans and members of the Caribbean diaspora who support Trump are “beyond help”.
When Luca Gargano called Trump his savior, suddenly a CEO supporting Trump was no longer a problem for Warren. Weeks later, he described the man who thought Bill Gates wanted to put a microchip in his head as “one of the most important minds in rum” and spent the next five years heaping weekly praise on Gargano while helping him build market share.
Reuben Virasami
Virasami is the founder of Sugarcane and Sugarcane Accessories, a group co-moderated with several Ministry of Rum moderators and other influential figures in the industry who have spoken at rum festivals or worked at award winning bars.
In this group, Ministry of Rum moderators have openly discussed their in-group bias, and boasted about banning people who are rude to them. Members have also used this group to coordinate their activity in other groups including the Ministry of Rum and other rum and cocktail groups.
In the examples below, a moderator asks members to support her stance in a Tiki cocktail group while another member asks them to “stir the pot” with her; meaning to intentionally cause drama and conflict.
Virasami agreed with his co-moderators who said that Trump was a racist and fascist when the CEO of Goya praised him. Just like them, his stance completely flipped when it came to Luca Gargano. In response to Gargano praising Trump, comparing Haitians to beasts of burden, and claiming that Chinese people were purposely spreading a virus, he promptly said that there is no evidence that Gargano is racist.
Shortly afterwards, he was the only person in Canada to get access to an expensive and exclusive mixed case of white rum distributed by Velier.
Chris Hassaan Francke
Francke is the owner of the Green Zone in DC, which has been recognized as one of the fifty best bars in the country, and received significant press for its anti-Trump stance. The Green Zone sells an anti-Trump punch, and has repeatedly stated that supporters of Trump are racist. Francke has regularly supported the stance by his peers who moderate the Ministry of Rum and Sugarcane and Sugarcane Accessories that the CEO of Goya along with anyone else who supports Trump is fascist and racist.
Just like his peers, he has also completely reversed his stance on Trump supporters being racist after Luca Gargano called Trump his “only hope against digital slavery” and was among the first to endorse Velier products after the Ministry of Rum was reopened.
Unsurprisingly, the Green Zone gets exclusive access to several Velier products, including being the only bar in the city to get the coveted Velier and Privateer collaboration, being the first bar in the country to receive new white rums distributed by Velier, and getting an opportunity to do a barrel pick of Clairin.
These three examples show people with significant influence in the rum industry giving preferential treatment to a company that has given them money or rum. There are others, and the list of figures in the rum industry who profit from talking about racism, colonization, and exploitation while working with brands that actively promote all three is even longer.