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Dive Brief:
- Chobani will spend $1.2 billion to buy and expand a facility in Allentown, Pennsylvania, which will create more than 900 jobs and establish a “major new center” for the company’s growth.
- The plant, which opened in 2021, is being acquired from Keurig Dr Pepper for $125 million and will be used to produce milk with more protein and less sugar than traditional milk, according to a statement. The milk will be used in new innovations such as protein-rich shakes.
- The Allentown facility is part of a more than $4 billion investment Chobani is making in its U.S. manufacturing network to increase production. Chobani said it has seen annual growth of 20% over the past three years, giving the company confidence to continue investing in its future.
Diving knowledge:
As consumers move toward convenience and nutrient-dense foods like protein, few companies have benefited as much as Chobani. With its recent flurry of investments, the New York-based company is showing that it doesn’t expect growth to slow down anytime soon.
Chobani announced in 2025 that it would invest $500 million to expand its facility in Twin Falls, Idaho, and spent $1.2 billion in a food manufacturing plant in Rome, New York.
“All of our businesses are growing and growing fast,” John Frost, Chobani’s chief customer officer, he said last November. “We’re seeing changes within the consumer, and those changes are coming to a place that Chobani has been for almost two decades.”
The food company, best known for its Greek yogurt, has thrived behind a portfolio based on low-sugar, clean-label, protein-packed snacks. Chobani’s portfolio goes beyond its signature yogurt to include creams, Café La Colombe i plant-based food manufacturer Daily Harvest.
The Allentown facility is within 500 miles of about 40 percent of the U.S. population, Chobani said. The location gives it access to some of the largest consumer markets in the country and helps Chobani supply its products to consumers more reliably.
The yogurt maker plans to have up to 10 production lines in Allentown, allowing it to scale existing products while continuing to develop new food and beverage offerings.
Chobani said its investment in Allentown over the next five years would result in a campus with 1.5 million square feet of manufacturing and warehouse space. At full capacity, the Allentown facility is expected to source more than 3 billion pounds of Pennsylvania milk annually.
“There’s already an incredibly talented team here that knows how to make great food. The foundation is solid. And we have the opportunity to build something extraordinary on top of it,” Chobani founder and CEO Hamdi Ulukaya said in a statement.
The purchase of the plant a Keurig Dr Pepper arrives on the same day as Chobani and the beverage giant they announced changes to their partnership. Keurig Dr Pepper is selling its minority stake in Chobani back to the yogurt maker for $800 million to pay down debt ahead of its upcoming split early next year.
Keurig Dr Pepper will continue to distribute La Colombe’s ready-to-drink lattes and other Chobani-owned beverage products. Chobani will also manufacture some products for Keurig Dr Pepper from the Allentown plant for a period of time.
