Chobani, the company Hamdi Ulukaya founded with five employees almost a decade ago, has become the number-one producer of Greek yogurt in the United States and is driving a dramatically rising trend. Greek yogurt, with its thicker, creamier texture and slightly tart taste, now accounts for 52 percent of U.S. yogurt sales, and some observers believe there is no end in sight. Chobani and other brands of Greek yogurt have more protein and less sugar than products made by most U.S. firms, and consumers—especially women and upper-income shoppers—are snapping it up as quickly as producers can manufacture it.

Chobani and Fage, one of its competitors, both have ambitious expansion plans, including enlarging their plants, which lie about an hour apart in New York State, where they have given a strong boost to the local economy. The state now has six yogurt plants and recently surpassed California as the top yogurt-producing state. Chobani also spent more than $250 million to open the largest plant of its kind in Twin Falls, Idaho, in part to ease distribution of its products to western states. Meanwhile, mainstream yogurt makers such as Dannon have introduced Greek-style yogurt products, too. 

Chobani has 3,000 employees and ships 2.2 million cases of yogurt across the United States every week, racking up annual sales of over $1 billion. With “How Matters” as its corporate motto, the firm still pays individual attention to each batch. “We aimed at people who never liked yogurt,” Ulukaya says, explaining that these consumers had never tasted Greek yogurt before, so they couldn’t be blamed for not realizing how tasty it could be. Chobani’s founder recently won the Ernst & Young World Entrepreneur Award for his business efforts.

Questions

1. What factors account for the rising popularity of Greek yogurt? 

2. Do you think the sales trend will continue upward? Why or why not?