diff --git a/debian/postinst b/debian/postinst
index 6cbe8c1778..94d9ab83d4 100755
--- a/debian/postinst
+++ b/debian/postinst
@@ -34,7 +34,7 @@ case "$1" in
     # Read and export debian specific configuration
     # Only exported variables will be passed on to gitlab app
     gitlab_debian_conf=/etc/gitlab/gitlab-debian.conf
-    export $(cat ${gitlab_debian_conf}|xargs)
+    export $(cat ${gitlab_debian_conf})
 
     # Create gitlab user
     . /usr/lib/gitlab/scripts/adduser.sh