Walk down the dairy aisle of any American grocery store and Chobani is almost impossible to miss. It sits at the top of the shelf, commanding more space than almost any other yogurt brand — and it has been doing exactly that for nearly two decades. But behind every cup of Greek yogurt and every bottle of La Colombe cold brew is one of the most extraordinary ownership stories in modern American food history. It starts with a Kurdish immigrant, an $800,000 government loan, and a shuttered Kraft factory in upstate New York — and it ends with a $22 billion private empire that its founder refuses to sell. Ever.
What Is Chobani?
Chobani is an American food company specializing in Greek yogurt and dairy products, headquartered in New York City (it moved from Norwich, New York in 2025). The company was originally incorporated as Agro Farma and launched under the Chobani name in March 2005 by founder Hamdi Ulukaya. The name Chobani comes from a variation of the Turkish word Çoban, meaning “shepherd” — a nod to Ulukaya’s childhood spent herding sheep and goats in rural Turkey.
As of 2026, Chobani generates an estimated $4.5 billion in annual revenue and is valued at approximately $22 billion, making it one of the largest privately held food companies in the United States.
Who Owns Chobani in 2026?
Chobani is owned by its founder and CEO Hamdi Ulukaya, who holds an estimated 68% controlling stake in the company. There is no parent corporation, no public stock, and no conglomerate pulling strings behind the scenes.
Hamdi Ulukaya has never sold control of Chobani — not to a major food company, not to a private equity firm, and not to Wall Street despite filing for an IPO and then withdrawing it in 2022. His ownership philosophy is deliberately built around long-term brand building rather than short-term investor returns. He has said publicly, with complete seriousness, that Chobani is “never going to be part of any other company. Never.”
Ownership and Key Stakeholders Table
| Owner / Party | Role | Stake | Key Detail |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hamdi Ulukaya | Founder, CEO & Majority Owner | ~68% of Chobani | Kurdish-Turkish immigrant; net worth ~$13.5 billion as of 2026 |
| Chobani Employees | Equity Participants | ~10% of Chobani | Granted equity in 2016 by Ulukaya — covering ~2,000 employees across all facilities |
| TPG Capital | Private Equity Minority Investor | Minority stake | PE firm; provided growth capital in earlier funding rounds |
| Other Private Investors | Minority Shareholders | Remaining stake | Includes participants from October 2025 $650M equity raise |
| No Public Shareholders | N/A | N/A | Chobani withdrew its IPO plans in 2022; remains fully private |
| La Colombe Coffee Roasters | Wholly Owned Subsidiary | 100% owned by Chobani | Acquired for $900 million in December 2023 |
The Origin Story: An Immigrant, a Loan, and a Kraft Factory
Hamdi Ulukaya was born in a small village in the Erzincan region of Turkey into a Kurdish family that made cheese and yogurt on their farm. He came to the United States in the 1990s to study English and ended up staying — eventually enrolling at Adelphi University in New York and running a small feta cheese business.
In 2005, Ulukaya received a piece of junk mail — an advertisement for a fully equipped but shuttered Kraft Foods yogurt factory in New Berlin, New York, available for sale at a bargain price. He took out an $800,000 loan from the U.S. Small Business Administration, bought the plant, hired a master Greek yogurt maker from Greece named Mustafa Dogan, and spent two years perfecting the recipe. Chobani first hit grocery shelves in 2007, starting with just one store — a ShopRite in Schuylkill Haven, Pennsylvania.
Within three years, Chobani became the top-selling yogurt brand in the United States. By 2010, the company had reached $1 billion in annual revenue — and Ulukaya had become a billionaire without ever taking the company public.
The 2016 Decision That Changed Everything: Giving Equity to Employees
In April 2016, Hamdi Ulukaya made a decision that shocked the business world — and made headlines around the planet. He announced that he was giving 10% of the entire company to his employees, totaling approximately 2,000 workers across Chobani’s manufacturing plants, logistics operations, and corporate offices.
The equity allocation covered every full-time employee, regardless of their role or title. A warehouse worker in Twin Falls, Idaho, got the same access to company ownership as a manager in the New York City headquarters. Ulukaya framed it simply: the people who built the company deserved to share in what they had built. As of 2026, those employee shareholders collectively own approximately 10% of Chobani — a stake now worth over $2 billion based on the company’s $22 billion valuation.
The $900 Million La Colombe Acquisition
Chobani has expanded well beyond yogurt — and the single biggest move in that expansion was the December 2023 acquisition of La Colombe Coffee Roasters for $900 million.
La Colombe was founded in 1994 in Philadelphia by Todd Carmichael and JP Iberti and became one of the most respected specialty coffee brands in America, supplying around half the country’s James Beard Award-winning restaurants at its peak. Ulukaya had actually been a silent investor in La Colombe since 2015, purchasing a stake from a private equity firm for $60 million. When Chobani acquired the entire company in 2023, it brought La Colombe’s 32 cafés, its booming ready-to-drink cold coffee line, and its manufacturing operations fully under the Chobani roof.
Ulukaya told Fast Company at the time that coffee “is going to be faster-growing and bigger than what Chobani’s core business is today.” The La Colombe acquisition was the clearest signal yet that Chobani intends to become a major force across multiple food and beverage categories — not just Greek yogurt.
The $20 Billion Valuation and $650 Million Fundraise
October 2025 brought the most significant financial milestone in Chobani’s history. The company raised $650 million in equity at a valuation of $20 billion — making it one of the most valuable private food companies in America.
Chobani was on track to deliver $3.8 billion in revenue for full-year 2025, up 28% compared to the prior year. By 2026, estimated annual revenue had grown further to approximately $4.5 billion, with the valuation rising to $22 billion. Hamdi Ulukaya’s personal net worth sits at approximately $13.5 billion as of 2026 — essentially all of it tied to his 68% stake in Chobani.
The $1.2 Billion Pennsylvania Investment and KDP Buyback
Just this week — on September 1, 2026 — Chobani announced two landmark deals simultaneously.
First, Chobani revealed a $1.2 billion investment over five years in a former Keurig Dr Pepper production plant in Allentown, Pennsylvania. The 1.5 million square foot facility is slated to open in 2027, with plans for 10 production lines, 900 new jobs, and the capacity to source 3 billion pounds of Pennsylvania milk for Chobani’s high-protein milk products. The Pennsylvania Sites Initiative added a further $50 million in public infrastructure grants to support the project.
Second, Chobani bought back Keurig Dr Pepper’s $925 million equity stake in the company — the stake that KDP had received as part of the La Colombe acquisition deal in 2023. By buying back this stake, Ulukaya has further consolidated his control over Chobani and eliminated a significant outside shareholder from the cap table entirely.
Will Chobani Ever Go Public?
Chobani filed for an IPO in 2021 and then quietly withdrew the application in 2022 without explanation. Since then, Ulukaya has given no indication that he intends to try again.
His manufacturing commitments tell the full story. Chobani has committed to over $1.7 billion in U.S. factory expansion across multiple states — including New York, Idaho, Michigan, and now Pennsylvania. These are decade-long infrastructure bets, not the kind of moves a founder makes when he is planning to hand the company over to Wall Street in the near future. Hamdi Ulukaya built Chobani to last — and based on everything he says and does, he intends to keep it that way.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Q1. Who owns Chobani in 2026?
Chobani is majority-owned by Founder and CEO Hamdi Ulukaya, who holds an estimated 68% stake — with no parent company or public shareholders.
Q2. Is Chobani publicly traded?
No. Chobani withdrew its IPO filing in 2022 and remains a fully private company as of 2026.
Q3. Who founded Chobani and when?
Hamdi Ulukaya, a Kurdish-Turkish immigrant, founded Chobani in 2005 after buying a shuttered Kraft Foods factory in New Berlin, New York with an $800,000 SBA loan.
Q4. What is Chobani’s valuation in 2026?
Chobani is valued at approximately $22 billion in 2026, following its $650 million equity raise at a $20 billion valuation in October 2025.
Q5. Do Chobani employees own part of the company?
Yes. In 2016, Ulukaya gave 10% of Chobani to approximately 2,000 employees — a stake now worth over $2 billion based on current valuations.
Q6. Does Chobani own La Colombe Coffee?
Yes. Chobani acquired La Colombe Coffee Roasters for $900 million in December 2023. La Colombe operates 32 cafés and a major ready-to-drink cold coffee line.
Q7. What is Hamdi Ulukaya’s net worth in 2026?
Hamdi Ulukaya’s net worth is estimated at approximately $13.5 billion in 2026, almost entirely tied to his 68% ownership stake in Chobani.
Q8. What is Chobani’s latest major investment in 2026?
On September 1, 2026, Chobani announced a $1.2 billion investment in an Allentown, Pennsylvania dairy facility, creating 900 jobs and sourcing 3 billion pounds of Pennsylvania milk.
Chobani is privately and majority-owned by its founder and CEO Hamdi Ulukaya, who holds approximately 68% of the company. Employees collectively own about 10% through a landmark 2016 equity grant. TPG Capital and other private investors hold the remaining minority stake. The company is valued at approximately $22 billion as of 2026, generates an estimated $4.5 billion in annual revenue, and owns La Colombe Coffee Roasters as a fully acquired subsidiary.
Chobani started with one man, one SBA loan, and one shuttered Kraft factory in 2005. Today it is a $22 billion American food empire — and its founder has made perfectly clear he has no intention of ever selling it.