diff --git a/cloudbuild.yaml b/cloudbuild.yaml
index bd1538ac2..83be2bdf2 100644
--- a/cloudbuild.yaml
+++ b/cloudbuild.yaml
@@ -13,6 +13,7 @@ steps:
       - BASE_REF=$_PULL_BASE_REF
       - REGISTRY=gcr.io/k8s-staging-ingress-nginx
       - HOME=/root
+      - USER=root
     args:
     - -c
     - |