The chairman of Barilla Group, the world's largest pasta company, is in hot water after his comments in which he said he refused to feature gay families in advertisements for his products because he prefers a "traditional" family.
"I would not do a commercial with a homosexual family, not for lack of respect toward homosexuals, who have the right to do whatever they want without disturbing others, but because I don't agree with them and I think we want to talk to traditional families," Guido Barilla said on the Italian radio program, La Zanzara, Wednesday.
Barilla said those who disagreed with his views, could simply just purchase another brand of pasta.
"For us, the sacral family remains one of the company's core values," he said. "Our family is a traditional family. If gays like our pasta and our advertising, they will eat our pasta; if they don't like that, they will eat someone else's pasta."
Burillo's comments sparked outrage in the gay community. Aurelio Mancuso, who heads the gay rights group, Equality Italia, said Barilla's comments were an "offensive provocation."
"Here we have another example of homophobia, Italian style," said Italian politician and LGBT activist Alessandro Zan. "I've already changed pasta brands, Barilla is terrible quality."
Zan announced a boycott the company's brands and encouraging other to follow suit, according to a report from Italy's Gazzetta del Sud.
Others took to Twitter to express their anger at Barilla's stance, using the hashtag #boicottabarilla.
#boycottbarilla it's not bad enough that u don't believe gay marriage is a family unit but saying a woman belongs in the kitchen #sexist
- Kmayer (@mayer_kari) September 27, 2013
Totally unacceptable behavior from @BarillaUS @Barilla, certainly will not be buying your products anymore!! #boycottbarilla #Equality - Stephen Duffy (@sduffy55) September 27, 2013
Take hate off the plate. #boycottbarilla pic.twitter.com/lBdD4Sbknh
- Jesse Brady (@jesse_brady) September 27, 2013
The swift backlash and the threat of an international boycott quickly forced Barilla, 55, to backtrack on his comments.
"I apologize if my words generated misunderstandings or controversy or if they hurt some people's feelings," he wrote in a post on the company's Facebook page Thursday, according to a translation from the Italian by The Huffington Post.
Barilla wrote that he had intended to "underline the centrality of the woman's role in the family."
"To be clear, I just want to specify that I do have great respect for every person, without any kind of distinction," he wrote. "I do respect gay people and everybody's freedom of expression. I also said I do respect gay marriage."
This is not the first time a high-powered food executive has drawn ire from the gay community for insensitive comments.
In June 2012, the Chick-fil-A president said he was proud that the fast food chain was anti-gay. Dan Cathy said he was "very much supportive of the family," but only when it came to heterosexual couples.
Founded in 1877 as a pasta shop in Parma, Italy, Barilla now exports to more than 100 countries and boasts 15 brands, including Mulino Bianco, Voiello, Pavesi and Wasa, in addition to its namesake Barilla pasta. The company had around $5.4 billion in net sales worldwide in 2012 and it employs more than 13,000 people. Guido Barilla took over in 1993, after his father died.
