CEO of yogurt giant Chobani expands in Idaho despite turmoil

Greek yogurt giant Chobani has announced a $20 million expansion of the world’s largest yogurt plant in south-central Idaho to serve as the company’s global research and development center.

Chobani founder and CEO Hamdi Ulukaya says he’s thrilled to begin building a 70,000-square-foot innovation facility in a region he’s dubbed the “Silicon Valley of food.”

Chobani opened the $450 million, 1 million-square-foot plant in Idaho in 2012. The company, based in New York, employs 2,000 employees, including 300 refugees.

Twin Falls has gained national attention over the years with far-right bloggers and conspiracy theorists focused on the town to blast warnings about often unfounded risks of immigration.

Ulukaya, a Turkish immigrant, says he has no regrets about moving his company to Idaho.