Chobani’s Ulukaya featured on 60 Minutes
NEW BERLIN – Hamdi Ulukaya, founder, CEO, and Chairperson of Chobani, was featured on CBS’ 60 Minutes on Sunday night.
Ulukaya, who came to the United States from Turkey 23 years ago on a student visa, shared his personal story and commented on his acceptance of hiring both local residents and refugees to work at Chobani.
He said that when he came to the Unites States, he did not speak any English and had no friends nor family with him.
Ulukaya settled in upstate New York, where he finished his studies and then worked on a dairy farm before starting up a feta cheese business. It was then when he spotted an ad for a fully equipped yogurt plant – the prior Kraft plant – for sale.
He was able to secure a loan, and started up Chobani – which means Shepherd – and hired his first five employees. Four of those first employees had been let go by Kraft, according to the episode.
Two years later, they had a product and a way to produce it. Today, Chobani is the number one Greek Yogurt manufacturer in America.
With regard to hiring both locals, Ulukaya said on ‘60 Minutes,’ “Anybody in the community who wanted to work for those years would find a job at Chobani. Anybody. We were hiring. And if they were not working for us, they were working for the contractors that were doing jobs for us. Because then, my number one thing is that I was going to hire everyone local before I go outside.”
He then learned of a refugee center in Utica where he heard people were having trouble securing employment.
Ulukaya said he hired translators as the refugees did not speak English, and provided transportation for the people to get from Utica to the Chobani plant to work.
“They are the most loyal, hardworking people along with everyone else. Right now in our plant here were have 19 different nationalities and 16 different translators,” Ulukaya said.
With regard to employing refugees, Ulukaya said, “They got here legally. They’ve gone through a most dangerous journey. They lost their family members. They lost everything they have. And here they are. They are either going to be a part of society or they are going to lose it again. The number one thing you can do is provide them jobs.”
Said Ulukaya, “The minute they [refugees] get a job, that’s the minute they stop being a refugee.”
For further information on Chobani, visit chobani.com.
Ulukaya, who came to the United States from Turkey 23 years ago on a student visa, shared his personal story and commented on his acceptance of hiring both local residents and refugees to work at Chobani.
He said that when he came to the Unites States, he did not speak any English and had no friends nor family with him.
Ulukaya settled in upstate New York, where he finished his studies and then worked on a dairy farm before starting up a feta cheese business. It was then when he spotted an ad for a fully equipped yogurt plant – the prior Kraft plant – for sale.
He was able to secure a loan, and started up Chobani – which means Shepherd – and hired his first five employees. Four of those first employees had been let go by Kraft, according to the episode.
Two years later, they had a product and a way to produce it. Today, Chobani is the number one Greek Yogurt manufacturer in America.
With regard to hiring both locals, Ulukaya said on ‘60 Minutes,’ “Anybody in the community who wanted to work for those years would find a job at Chobani. Anybody. We were hiring. And if they were not working for us, they were working for the contractors that were doing jobs for us. Because then, my number one thing is that I was going to hire everyone local before I go outside.”
He then learned of a refugee center in Utica where he heard people were having trouble securing employment.
Ulukaya said he hired translators as the refugees did not speak English, and provided transportation for the people to get from Utica to the Chobani plant to work.
“They are the most loyal, hardworking people along with everyone else. Right now in our plant here were have 19 different nationalities and 16 different translators,” Ulukaya said.
With regard to employing refugees, Ulukaya said, “They got here legally. They’ve gone through a most dangerous journey. They lost their family members. They lost everything they have. And here they are. They are either going to be a part of society or they are going to lose it again. The number one thing you can do is provide them jobs.”
Said Ulukaya, “The minute they [refugees] get a job, that’s the minute they stop being a refugee.”
For further information on Chobani, visit chobani.com.
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