Hamdi Ulukaya, founder of the Chobani Greek yogurt company, bragged about stealing the successful recipe from a rival, a shocking new court filing alleges.
Ulukaya — who has been dubbed the “king of yogurt” and lauded for his rags-to-riches story — “boasted” more than once that he obtained Chobani’s formula “by bribing a former employee of Fage,” according to court papers.
The filing, made by the yogurt mogul’s ex-wife, Ayse Giray, claims Ulukaya “travelled to Europe” to meet the ex-Fage employee, whom he paid 30,000 euros, or roughly $41,145, based on current exchange rates.
The stunning allegation is the latest swipe to emerge from a bitter legal battle between Ulukaya and Giray, who threw the first blow by claiming she owns a 53 percent stake in Chobani.
Giray claims she gained the majority stake in the successful yogurt company by fronting a $500,000 investment in Euphrates — a Chobani predecessor company.
Giray filed a 2003 hand-written letter from Ulukaya that purports to promise her a 53 percent stake in Euphrates.
A press release announcing Euphrates’ purchase of the former Kraft yogurt plant that gave rise to Chobani is also in the court file.
Giray has no stake in either Euphrates or Chobani — and can’t produce any stock certificates proving otherwise, Ulukaya maintains.
Giray’s latest legal salvo, aimed at keeping Ulukaya from selling a part of her alleged 53 percent stake in the upstate New York firm, also claims:
• Ulukaya was so desperate for money when he launched Euphrates that he not only borrowed from Giray, he also stole checks from his brother’s account and forged his brother’s signature.
• Ulukaya admitted to Giray’s lawyers that he wrote the note promising her a 53 percent stake, but later said it was a “hypothetical transaction designed to defraud Turkish banks.”
• Ulukaya was sued by his family of dairy farmers in Turkey in 2003, around the same time he was borrowing money from Giray. The lawsuit claimed that Ulukaya and his brother Bilal embezzled a check from the family business and threatened to use it unless they got $750,000.
• Ulukaya — who has been embraced by Gov. Andrew Cuomo for revitalizing rural areas of the state with a yogurt-fueled economy — paid the Fulton County district attorney $1 million to settle allegations that he ordered Euphrates employees to pour waste down the drains after shutting off the water sewage meter.
A Chobani spokesman said the accusations are “baseless and without merits.” Richard Feldman, a lawyer for Giray, declined to comment.
Giray asked the judge on Thursday to order Chobani to avoid any sales that might diminish her claimed stake, amid reports that the yogurt maker is in talks with potential investors, including private-equity firm TPG Capital, to sell a 15 percent stake.
A deal with TPG is imminent, said a source close to the situation.
With Josh Kosman