These are the big brands hidden behind Costco's Kirkland label

Confirmed.

Even coffee snobs may be intrigued by a few of Costco’s relatively inexpensive house blends, which boast of their ties to the world’s largest coffeehouse chain.

Kirkland offers certain varieties of their house blend with the stamp, “Custom roasted by Starbucks.”

The two-and-a-half-pound Starbucks-affiliated bags include Kirkland’s Signature House Blend Medium Roast, Espresso Blend Dark Roast and Decaf House Blend Medium Roast.

According to reporting done by Mashed, the relationship between Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz and Costco CEO Jim Sinegal has historically been pretty friendly — except for one time when Schultz did not want to lower their bean prices.

Sinegal, in retaliation, asserted that he was “the price police.” Schultz eventually capitulated and the coffee remained on Costco shelves.

Confirmed.

Many buyers avoid store-brand batteries for fear they’ll drain faster than the ones produced by the big-name brands. You won’t know until your device drops dead at the most inconvenient time.

Thankfully, Costco’s generic batteries are made by a company that’s “Trusted Everywhere.”

Costco CEO Craig Jelinek revealed that Duracell is the manufacturer of Kirkland Signature Batteries in an interview with Atlanta station WSB-TV in 2016.

They’re a pretty good deal, too. A 48-pack of AA batteries costs $13.99 on the Costco website, while you’ll cough up the same for a 40-pack of the Duracell brand.

The global leader in alkaline batteries, specialty cells and rechargeables with its iconic pink bunny mascot (yes, like rival Energizer) has been around since the early 1940s.

In a video review, Consumer Reports noted that Duracell’s alkaline batteries outperformed pretty much every other battery on the market, which corroborated other online reviews.

Denied.

Plenty of people will tell you with confidence that Costco’s vodka is a duplicate of Bacardi’s Grey Goose, produced in France. And the now-defunct alcohol research site Under the Label reported that both vodkas are made using water from the Gensac Springs in the Cognac region.

However, the global ambassador for Grey Goose denied the rumor in an interview with Business Insider, and Costco representatives have never commented.

Don’t be too disappointed, though. Kirkland Signature Vodka has trounced the expensive name brand in multiple blind taste tests despite being a fraction of the price.

An Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau registry shows LeVecke, one of the world’s largest producers of spirits (including Island 808 and Pau Maui vodkas), applied to supply vodka under the Kirkland label, though it's unclear if that's the full story.

Confirmed.

The Kirkland Signature Three Berry Blend is produced by Townsend Farms — a wholesaler of both fresh and frozen berry products, based in the Pacific Northwest. The business started as a family farm in 1906. Its frozen products are distributed under both private and branded labels.

Costco sells Townsend Farms berries in a four-pound, resealable bag, which is perfect for summer smoothie and home-made ice cream season.

The FDA issued a public health alert concerning the mixed fruit product in 2019 for concerns over a possible hepatitis A virus contamination, outing Townsend Farms as the supplier behind Kirkland Signature Three Berry Blend and Kroger’s frozen blackberry products.

Costco also sells Townsend Farms’ Berry Supreme with raspberries, blueberries, blackberries and strawberries.

Looks likely.

It’s possible that this family-owned pizza brand still produces pies for Kirkland Signature, but neither company has commented on the connection.

United Steelworkers reported in a 2012 press release that members of the Palermo Workers Union would be visiting Costco Wholesale headquarters — since the warehouse club was the largest retailer of Palermo products in the country at the time.

Costco was known for carrying affiliated pizza products, including the Kirkland Signature Frozen Pizza.

However, the warehouse no longer seems to carry the Palermo brand and the packaging of its current Kirkland brand frozen pizza looks a little different compared to the older version.

The taste has potentially changed, too. Food review site Costcuisine mentioned in late 2021 that while Kirkland’s frozen pepperoni pizza wasn’t “bad” for a frozen pizza, it didn’t have a ton of cheese nor a ton of sauce.

A serving of Kirkland’s frozen pep pizza — about one third of the whole pie — is 470 calories and 1080 milligrams of sodium.

Confirmed.

We’re spilling the (green) tea on the manufacturer behind yet another Kirkland Signature product — although the name is pretty evident from just the packaging.

Costco offers a co-branded Kirkland Signature and Ito En 100-count box of green tea bags, which feature a blend of sencha and matcha.

Ito En, a Japanese multinational drinks company, offers a lineup of tea products under its own brand names — Oi Ocha, matcha LOVE and Tea’s Tea Organic — including bottled teas, loose leaf, tea bags and teaware gift sets.

You can also find some matcha LOVE stores in the U.S.

Reviews on Amazon.com are pretty positive, with one customer writing, “The caffeine punch seems much more slowly released, rather than something from a strong gunpowder for example … The taste gets stronger but never bitter, and tastes just as good whether freshly hot or at room temperature after being steeped for hours. Tastes great without any added sweetener. It's a hearty cuppa.”

Ito En tea is prepared in the traditional Japanese way, according to their Amazon site, in which the tea leaves are steamed, rolled and then dried. This minimal processing allegedly stops the tea from oxidizing too quickly and preserves taste and flavor.

Confirmed.

The next time you check out the frozen seafood aisle at Costco, consider going private label instead of big brand — you might still be scoring high-quality goods for a lower price.

A 2020 recall over salmonella contamination concerns revealed that Mumbai-based marine products manufacturer Kader Exports was the supplier behind Kirkland Signature cooked, peeled and deveined tail-on and tail-off shrimp.

According to the FDA notice, Kader Exports was also responsible for supplying shrimp to brands like Aqua Star Reserve, CenSea and Unistar.

Costco food and products review site Costcuisine posted a review of the tail-on cooked shrimp in 2020.

“I was pleasantly surprised by how fresh, plump, flavorful and tasty the Costco Kirkland Signature Tail-On Cooked Shrimp are! I sautéed them in a bit of butter and they tasted great! You could definitely eat these defrosted, plain with some seafood sauce or you can add them to pasta, salads or other dishes.”

According to the nutritional information for Kirkland’s “tail on” shrimp, a four-ounce serving has 20 grams of protein, which is equivalent to 40% of your recommended daily intake.

Just speculation.

Could Costco’s private-label leggings come from one of the hottest yoga wear brands in the country? Some seem to think so.

TikTok creator @ashiemari made a video in 2020 alleging that Kirkland Signature’s $17 leggings were made by Lululemon.

Business development and marketing consultant Dorian Smith-Garcia told entertainment magazine Parade in 2021, “I wouldn’t be surprised by this at all.”

She added, “I wouldn’t expect any established brand to admit that they’re creating private-label goods for a big box or discount retailer, but it’s an incredibly common practice … private label projects are a great option for brands looking to reinforce their earnings.”

However, neither company has commented on the possible connection, and it looks like the Kirkland Signature leggings are no longer available on the store’s website in either the U.S. or Canada.

The bulk store may be banking on customers being used to their habit of rotating products off the shelves and then bringing them back if demand persists. For now, they’re gone — hopefully not for good.

Looks likely.

Depending on where you live, your Costco’s Kirkland craft beers could originate from one of two places. The Takeout claims that Kirkland beers on the East Coast come from Matt Brewing in New York and that beers in the West link to Gordon Biersch.

The publication says West Coast Kirkland beer bears the name “Hopfen Und Malz Brewing Co.” on the label. The site Mashed adds that the address of Hopfen Und Malz matches that of Gordon Biersch in San Jose, California.

Meanwhile, Mashed says, beer on the East Coast bears the name Bricks and Barley Brewing Company from Stevens Point, Wisconsin. It’s unclear whether this company is related to Matt Brewing, which makes Saranac and Utica Club.

The regional divide remains unconfirmed, but an Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau registry shows both Gordon Biersch and Matt Brewing have applied for labels under the Kirkland brand. Wisconsin’s Regal Brau also makes an appearance.

In a 2018 article inspired by the retirement of Kirkland’s light beer, The Takeout reviewed Kirkland’s craft beer variety pack. The reviewer considered the four aspects of a typical brew review, including aroma, flavor, appearance and body.

According to the review, the IPA and pale ale are worth recommending, while the malt-forward brews leave a little to be desired.

Just speculation.

Rumor has it that those affordable sets of cream-and-purple Kirkland Signature Moisture hair care bottles have high-end origins.

On Reddit and around the web, you’ll find a lot of speculation that L’Oréal’s Pureology division could be behind Costco’s shampoo and conditioner. However, there doesn’t seem to be much evidence.

The bottles look pretty similar, and some reviewers online suggest Kirkland’s product is a fine replacement for the Pureology version. Take from that what you will.

The Kirkland Signature Moisture hair care bottles are advertised as sulfate, paraben and gluten free and 100% vegan.

On their website, Costco describes their Kirkland shampoo as being made with a mixture of rainforest botanicals, argon and avocado oils, and says it’s also safe for use on color treated hair. These ingredients are not the same as what Pureology lists for their comparable product, which uses scents like lavender and emollients such as jojoba oil.

“I have both real Pureology and this KS shampoo in my bathroom. The ingredients are different and they smell very different. However, the KS moisturizes very much like the Pureology. But the KS leaves my hair awfully greasy looking. Maybe made in the same factory but different formulas?” writes Redditor Shuhshine.

Confirmed.

Look no further than Keurig — yes, the popular brand behind coffee makers and pods — for your morning brew. The seal is right on the box.

Costco made a deal with Keurig Green Mountain, Inc. in 2012 to produce the Kirkland Signature K-Cups, which currently come in a light roast Breakfast Blend, a dark roast, Pacific Bold and medium roasts House Decaf and Summit Roast.

"We believe Kirkland Signature K-Cup packs provide an incremental opportunity that complements our broad portfolio of coffee and beverage brands and creates more options for value-oriented consumers," said T.J. Whalen, former VP of marketing and sales at Green Mountain.

The announcement sent Green Mountain shares up by 9%, reported Reuters at the time.

The website listing for their Pacific Bold dark roast says that this blend is the perfect mix of smoky and sweet flavors, and is perfect for joe-lovers who appreciate their cup with a bit of attitude.

Multiple sources confirm that different roasts, bean for bean, usually contain around the same amount of caffeine. According to Healthline, the reason dark roast coffee tastes stronger is that it was roasted at a higher temperature than its light and medium roast counterparts.

Confirmed.

Kirkland Signature Diapers are made by Kimberly-Clark, the same manufacturer responsible for trusted nappies such as Huggies and GoodNites.

Costco finance chief Richard Galanti confirmed the connection in a 2017 interview with the Wall Street Journal. Costco had asked both Kimberly-Clark and rival corporation Procter & Gamble to produce diapers under the Kirkland brand, however only the former agreed.

Parents will notice that the only name-brand diapers sold at Costco are Kimberly-Clark’s Huggies. Procter & Gamble’s Pampers are nowhere in sight.

A 2000 Wall Street Journal article also reported that the arrangement helped the two companies manage inventory and cut down on costs.

"If a company finds a way to lower its costs, it gets those deals," said Richard Dicerchio, former chief operating officer at Costco.

The Kirkland diapers come in sizes 1-6, are made with 20% plant materials and offer a wetness indicator. Their average total customer rating is about 4.7 out of five.

Confirmed.

You can find a wide array of Ocean Spray juices and “Craisins” at your local Costco, but Kirkland only stamps its name on one of those products.

Kirkland Signature Ocean Spray Cranberry Premium 100% Juice is a mouthful but promises pure juice with no added sugar or preservatives in every gulp.

A serving will also give you 100% of your daily required amount of vitamin C, and 9% of your daily carbohydrates.

It features a blend of cranberry, apple and grape juice, similar to the Ocean Spray 100% Juice product, except the latter also includes pear juice.

Costco sells the 96-fluid-ounce bottles in packs of two, so you’ll have to free up plenty of room in your fridge if you plan on giving the juice a try.

The Ocean Spray website advertises their partnership with Costco, confirming that they use North American cranberries to make their juice, and include a variety of recipes for you to experiment with.

Looks likely.

Costco sells its own store brand of children’s multivitamin gummies in orange, cherry and green apple flavors, providing over 10 essential vitamins and minerals — according to the store website.

The gummies come in 160-count bottles in packs of two or four, so you can stock up on the stuff if necessary.

If you check out the listing for the multivitamin gummies on the Amazon.com site, you’ll notice Kev & Cooper LLC is named as the manufacturer. That said, neither company has officially confirmed the connection.

Kev & Cooper brands include KC Cubs, which produces education and playtime rugs for kids, soap, cologne and hair care product brand Duru and Evy Baby, which sells diapers and wet wipes.

Fun fact: if you are an adult who wants a gummy vitamin, there are recommendations on the bottle for how much of the children’s strength an adult should take so you, too, can get your daily intake in delicious, gummy form.

Confirmed.

H.K. Anderson collaborated with Costco on its Kirkland Signature Valencia peanut butter-filled pretzels — however, this iteration no longer seems to be available on the Costco website.

Costco currently sells a similar looking product, but without the H.K. Anderson labeling — however, you might be able to find the original at Walmart or Amazon.

One reviewer on the Amazon.com site says to be wary, however.

“The order is a scam. We ordered these since it said HK Anderson on the label, which are quite flavorful and we know well … The product arrived with a different label without the HK Anderson label. There was a little sticker on [the] back. The taste and quality were significantly inferior to the true H K ANDERSON. If I wanted these, I could have gone to Costco for 1/2 the price.”

The serving size is also unfairly small: The pretzels are each only about the size of a slightly hefty postage stamp, but eight of them make up a serving.

H.K. Anderson is currently owned by American snack giant Utz Brands.

Looks likely.

Yogurt giant Ehrmann, of dairy delights such as Yoginos and LACTO Zero, could also be the brand behind Kirkland Signature Greek Yogurt.

In his 2017 book Disciplined Growth Strategies, American businessman Peter Cohan says that Ehrmann Commonwealth Dairy supplied Greek yogurt under private labels to a number of retailers, including Costco.

Ehrmann is one of the largest dairy companies in Germany and also produces Greek yogurt under the Green Mountain Creamery and Liebe brands.

With interesting flavor selections like stracciatella, peach and passion fruit and chocolate hazelnut, Ehrmann concentrates on making a small selection of gourmet dairy products.

Their milk is sourced from cows from small farms, and as a family-run, medium-sized business, they take their commitment to local economy and sustainability efforts very seriously.

Confirmed.

While Kirkland Signature’s Infant Formula was once a product of Abbott Laboratories — the makers of Similac — it seems the brand has converted to Perrigo.

A USDA report to Congress on baby formula prices and availability says Abbott Laboratories began producing infant formula for Costco under the storebrand label in 2001.

However, veteran parents have noticed the yellow box of Kirkland’s Signature Infant Formula has since been replaced by a blue box bearing the name Kirkland Pro-Care Infant Formula.

Perrigo’s StoreBrandFormula.com, which catalogs the company’s retail relationships, includes Costco on its list of partners and links directly to the Kirkland Signature Pro-Care Infant Formula on Costco’s website.

Costco typically sells a dual pack of Kirkland’s non-GMO formula, which is both certified halal and kosher. Perrigo’s website offers a few more varieties.

Reviews by parents of the Kirkland Signature baby formula on Influenster.com say across the board that their babies enjoyed the taste of the formula, that there was little to no stomach upset, and that the price was more desirable.

Confirmed.

Costco partnered with New Zealand-based Reynolds of aluminum foil fame to produce its Kirkland Signature Foodservice Foil.

The proof is on the packaging, with the Reynolds logo proudly displayed on the shiny blue boxes.

Costco says the foil is highly durable and made for use in commercial kitchens, restaurants, catering businesses, school cafeterias and small businesses. You can use it to line pans for the oven or to store food in the fridge or freezer.

It gives you 1,000 square feet total of foil, which is potentially more than you ever dreamed or bargained for.

Be careful of your fingers though, as the box comes with an integrated foil cutter that allows you to measure and cut every piece according to your need.

The Kirkland foils come in larger sizes than the regular Reynolds foils on Costco’s website, and their higher prices reflect the difference.

Confirmed.

If you get your hearing tested at Costco — which is completely free of charge — you might be advised to pick up a set of these.

The sleek Kirkland Signature (KS9) 9.0 Digital Hearing Instruments come in five different colors and use special wireless tech powered by Sonova, according to a hearing health and audiology magazine.

The Hearing Review reported in 2019 that Sonova confirmed it was contracted to supply its products to Costco under its flagship brand. Sure enough, Sonova is listed as the manufacturer at the end of the owner’s manual.

The new KS10, which was released in 2021, comes in bronze, stone, silver, beige and black colors and includes a portable charger. Its user manual also names Sonova as the manufacturer.

Designed to be as unobtrusive as possible, you can also get a custom ear mold for an extra cost. The price for the non-custom product includes two hearing aids and one charger.

You can connect immediately to the device of your choice — music or TV — and its smart technology automatically adjusts to the changing volume levels of each new environment.

Confirmed.

Water does taste different depending on the brand, though Kirkland Signature water will probably taste identical to other private labels out there.

Family-owned Niagara Bottling, which calls itself "the industry leading private label bottled water supplier in the Western United States," is behind Kirkland Signature Purified Water, according to its very own label.

Costco says minerals are added to the water “for a pure, refreshing taste” and it is bottled using “state-of-the-art purification, filtration and reverse osmosis technologies.”

Niagara Bottling also sells water from spring to sparkling under its own brands Niagara, H2O+ and V-ssentials, teas under its Tea Joy label and protein nutrition shakes.

As a business, they have committed to the sustainability initiatives set out by the U.N., and have implemented several water saving initiatives including a water recovery system, high efficient plumbing in their offices and special cooling operations that save over 4 million gallons of water every year.

Just speculation.

Kirkland Signature’s bourbon may have a new supplier following a supposed switch.

An Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau registry points to the famous Jim Beam as the producer behind Kirkland Signature’s Kentucky bourbon. At least, that was the case a decade ago.

According to some reports, the Kirkland bourbon “distilled and bottled by the Commonwealth of Kentucky” has vanished and been replaced by “Tennessee Straight Bourbon Whiskey” on store shelves.

According to Punch — an online wine, spirits and beer magazine — distillery George Dickel is the best bet for the current supplier of the new whiskey.

The flavor notes of the George Dickel whisky — which uses the traditional Scottish spelling of “whisky” in its personal marketing — say its eight-year variety starts off with vanilla, has cherry and orange overtones, and finishes with almond toffee and oak.

It’s 90 proof and they recommend serving it straight, on the rocks or in a bourbon-forward cocktail, like an old fashioned.

Confirmed.

Warren Oil Company is speculated to be the manufacturer behind Walmart’s Super Tech and Amazon’s AmazonBasics motor oils, but we can confirm it supplies the Kirkland variety.

Kirkland Signature Full Synthetic SAE 5W-30 and Heavy Duty Diesel 15W-40 Motor Oil display their makers in fine print on the back of the jug: “Manufactured by Warren Distribution, Inc.”

The heavy-duty stuff comes in three-packs of one-gallon bottles and promises increased wear protection, better oxidation control and a highly shear stable formulation. The Full Synthetic product sells as 12 one-quart bottles and says it’s for advanced wear protection, extended engine life and controls thermal breakdown.

Warren, which claims to be one of North America’s largest independent lubricant manufacturers, markets its products around the world under several brands, such as MAG 1, and under private labels as well.

Commenters on a Reddit thread say that it has both Dexos and API certification, which individually guarantee quality markers like amount of emissions — and the oil allegedly remains usable for several months after being opened.

It's complicated.

While other grocery stores might offer more varieties of wine, Costco doubles down on quality and price. Its Kirkland Signature wines are the product of cut-rate contracts with established wine makers and importers.

An Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau registry links Kirkland Signature’s California wines to E&J Gallo Winery and its Italian wines to Ethica Wines. The bureau regulates and collects taxes on alcohol, tobacco and firearm trading within the U.S.

E&J Gallo Winery produces its own vino but also distributes products from other California wineries to countries around the world. (Think Carnivor or Naked Grape.) It's unclear whether it has a hand in actually making Kirkland wine or is just a middleman. Meanwhile, Ethica Wines specializes in importing Italian wines like Borgogno and Bellavista.

More digging within the tax and trade bureau’s registry reveals Kirkland French reds are connected to Misa Imports, while listings for port, sherry, cooking and dessert wines are linked to Kobrand’s Joto Sake. One Kirkland white wine was linked to famous director Francis Ford Coppola’s winery, and a California red was affiliated with Grove Street Winery.

Confirmed.

Next time you’re hankering for some white albacore, don’t worry about sacrificing quality for cost.

In a 2003 interview with Money magazine, Costco executive vice-president Tim Rose argued that the canned tuna available on the market had declined in quality for years.

So Costco struck a deal with global seafood company Bumble Bee to make a meatier product, just “like it used to be.”

The new “superior quality” solid white albacore hit shelves in 2002. The magazine also notes that the Kirkland tuna surprisingly cost more — at 99 cents a can in an eight-pack — compared to the branded version, which retailed for 90 cents a can in a 10-pack at the time.

The seven-ounce cans of albacore tuna that Costco sells in packs of eight is certified dolphin safe, certified kosher by Parve, and promises complete traceability from sea to shelf.

In a serving-size of two drained ounces, Kirkland’s canned albacore has low amounts of sodium and cholesterol, and contains 16% of your daily recommended intake of protein.

Confirmed.

You don’t need to look hard to source this one. Kirkland Signature Aged Balsamic Vinegar of Modena boasts of its 100-year-old manufacturer on the bottle.

Costco partnered with Modena-based company Acetum all the way back in 1999 to produce its balsamic vinegar, according to The Costco Connection.

Cassidy K.V. left a glowing review of the balsamic vinegar on Amazon.com. “This is what balsamic vinegar should taste like; rich, tart, and with a teasing sweetness just around the corner. Your roasted tomatoes will never be the same; your fresh salads will rejoice. You'll be putting just a splash of this in all sorts of places, with tremendous results.”

Like the name “Parmigiano Reggiano” for cheese, “Balsamic Vinegar of Modena” is a protected title that can only be applied to products that fit certain geographical and processing standards.

According to Acetum’s website, they are considered the number one producer of Balsamic Vinegar PGI, and are experts of specialty vinegars.

Confirmed.

This one’s all about the numbers. According to Forbes, all tequilas have an identifying number, or NOM, that can be used to track where they came from.

The site Thrillist once reported that Kirkland Signature Añejo Tequila came from the same source as Ed Hardy Tequila. Costco also once used La Madrileña in Tototlán in the Jalisco Highlands — and you may still come across some bottles at the warehouse that bear the same NOM (1142).

A review of the anejo variety by Costcuisine calls the oak-aged agave a fine sipping liquor, which can be consumed “straight” — meaning it’s more premium than bar-rail — or mixed into the cocktail of your choice. It also has notes of caramel, brown sugar and vanilla.

Currently, the Kirkland Signature Tequilas come from the Corporate Distillery Santa Lucia, SA de CV, says Forbes. If you check the Tequila Matchmaker site, you’ll discover that the KS products can be pinpointed to the distillery with the NOM 1173.

The Tesistán-based distillery also produces tequila under its own brands, like Destilador and Especial Newton.

Confirmed.

While other theories regarding Kirkland Signature’s alcohol selection have either been debunked or unconfirmed, Costco’s scotch is definitely a product of independent bottler Alexander Murray.

In a 2016 interview with Market Watch Magazine, Alexander Murray president and CEO Stephen Lipp confirmed that the company supplies its scotch to Costco.

The magazine says the independent bottler has been behind the Kirkland Signature house brand since 2007 and Costco sells an estimated 100,000 cases or more of its blended scotch each year.

If you take a closer look at the Kirkland Signature Blended House Whiskey or Single Malt Scotch, you’ll also notice the Alexander Murray & Co. Ltd. label on the bottles.

According to the Alexander Murray website, they prefer to use the spring harvest wheat for their whisky, which is the most popular among scotch-makers.

Reviews of the independent bottler’s single malt often convey disinterest, but interestingly, Kirkland Signature’s malts are consistently rated well.

Confirmed.

It’s in the name.

Kirkland openly teamed up with candy company Jelly Belly to sell their signature “gourmet” jelly beans. At Costco you can get four-pound jars of sugary goodness featuring 49 different flavors that are kosher and fat free.

Assuming an equal distribution of beans, that means you’ll be able to enjoy a full 1.3 ounces of your favorite flavor in every jar.

The product features a color menu and recipe card, so you know what to expect when you pop one of the brightly colored candies in your mouth. You can enjoy anything from coconut and green apple to fancier flavors like Krispy Kreme glazed blueberry cake and Tutti Frutti.

You can even check out the combinations they recommend to make flavors like root beer floats!

Even though the Jelly Belly company has been around for over 120 years and, according to Mental Floss, has been making “interesting” flavors since 1976, reviewers can often be confused by the flavors they get.

This review on Amazon takes the metaphorical jelly bean cake: “Instead of the regular flavors you know and love, expect to eat your way through four pounds of champagne, Krispy Kreme, maple syrup and 7UP flavored beans.”

Looks likely.

Although neither company has confirmed the connection, German company Henkel is speculated to be the brand behind Kirkland Signature detergent.

In 2008, The Salt Lake Tribune reported that Huish, “the largest manufacturer of private-label laundry detergents and fabric softeners in North America,” would merge with Unilever’s laundry detergent division. Huish, it said, also made products for Costco.

The merger formed Sun Products, which is now a leading laundry care brand known for products such as Snuggle, All and Sun. Then in 2016, Henkel acquired Sun Products. Henkel itself produces popular laundry detergent brands, like Persil.

Following this long and confusing history, it seems likely that Kirkland Signature laundry detergents are now produced by Henkel. Reviewers certainly think so.

The product arm of The New York Times, Wirecutter, compared a few of the top laundry detergents to determine which was the most effective.

While the definite Herkel product, Persil, came in second overall, Kirkland’s third-place detergent was tops in terms of stain removal and odor elimination. It was also dubbed the best budget pick.

Confirmed.

A staple at house parties, Costco’s giant packs of disposable red cups come from a familiar place.

The packaging clearly bears the blue Chinet logo under “Kirkland Signature” and next to the bold title “The Big Red Cup.”

The cups come in packs of 240 and are advertised as extra strong and premium heavyweight plastic — so you should be good to go for your next big birthday bash. Considering that the pack costs $13.99, that works out to about six cents a cup. These cups hold 18 ounces of liquid.

The American company Chinet has produced disposable tableware such as plates, bowls and cutlery for over 90 years and sells them through other big retailers like Target.

Reviews of the cups on Influenster rave about their durability and sturdiness. One person writes that a pack from Costco lasts her a few years of birthday parties and celebrations.

Looks likely.

Customers went hog wild for a co-branded Kirkland Signature and Hormel bacon product, which Costco rolled out in 2004, according to Supermarket News.

The bacon was reportedly sliced a bit thicker, compared to the usual Hormel bacon, and came in a one-pound package for $8.99. The item is no longer listed on Costco’s American website — although you may still be able to grab it at Canadian locations.

You can still find a Kirkland Signature hickory-smoked bacon at American warehouses, but some customers claim it doesn’t match up to the Hormel co-branded version.

“The new bacon is horrible! The edges get hard as hell when cooked just a bit too much!” writes Artistic_Mention_372 on Reddit. However, medhat20005 claims the private-label bacon might still be supplied by Hormel.

Supermarket News reported back in 2005 that Hormel was Costco’s bacon supplier at the time, but it’s unclear whether the new Kirkland Signature product comes from Hormel as well.

Confirmed.

If you prefer to drink your veggies, you might already know this one. Kirkland Signature co-branded with Bolthouse Farms to turn out their three-pack bottles of carrot juice.

Kirkland Signature by Bolthouse Farms 100% Carrot Juice is made from organic carrots that get harvested, peeled and juiced all within 24 hours, says a 2009 issue of The Costco Connection.

The product is no longer available on the Costco website, however, so it’s possible it has been discontinued. The site doesn’t seem to offer carrot juice at all anymore, perhaps due to the bad reputation the drink got several years ago. In 2006, Canadian news site CBC reported on two Toronto residents who had been paralyzed after drinking the same batch of carrot juice that caused four severe cases of botulism in the U.S.

After the Bolthouse family sold the company, it changed hands from a private equity firm to Campbell Foods. Then it was acquired by a second private equity firm in 2019, according to Food Dive magazine.

Bolthouse, the “fourth-generation family farm” in California, still produces beverages, dressings and bags of carrots, which are sold at retailers across North America.

Confirmed.

Mattresses probably aren’t the first item on your Costco shopping list, but the company does offer a generous selection that includes Novaform and Sleep Science, as well as its own Kirkland brand.

The Kirkland Signature mattress, however, is the result of Costco’s partnership with Stearns & Foster. The Kirkland Signature by Stearns & Foster Lakeridge Mattress uses memory foam and gel foam and comes in king, California king and queen sizes.

Buyer beware, though: If you like a box spring for your mattress, you will need to remember to add it to your cart mid-check out on the site. It’s an additional cost of $114.99 for a queen, or $159.99 for a king.

Headboards and bed frames aren’t included in the purchase price either.

“There was one in [the] store and I laid down on it briefly. Seemed nice. Not overly [firm], nor soft. I told my BF if I’d been in the market for a bed, I would have seriously considered it. Price was good,” writes Pebmarsh on Reddit.

The company dates back to 1846, when Seth Foster and G.S. Stearns got together to manufacture cotton goods for horse carriage upholstery. They later moved on to hotel mattresses.

Confirmed, for some areas.

The warehouse giant spilled this sweet secret in a 2019 issue of The Costco Connection.

Lucas Stanuch, Costco corporate foods and sundries buyer, explained that the company has an extensive program to provide local honey to customers. However, not every state has enough beekeepers to supply the demand.

As a result, your particular bottle of Kirkland Signature 100% Local Raw Unfiltered Honey might be a blend of honey from various suppliers across the U.S.

One of those suppliers is Rice’s Honey. The Colorado-based company, known for its brand of Local Hive Honey, has been around since 1924 and says it only works with local American beekeepers.

Reviews on Amazon for the honey see 74% of customers rate it five stars. They praise its taste, but a consistent criticism is that it solidifies before you get to use it all.

The serving size is one tablespoon, which gives you 60 calories and 6% of your daily recommendation of carbohydrates.

Confirmed.

Looking for disposable lenses? Costco offers a Kirkland Signature product with big brand origins.

Just check out the product on Costco’s website — the warehouse chain lists CooperVision as the manufacturer behind Kirkland Signature’s daily disposable contact lenses under the specifications section.

CooperVision bills itself as a global leader in contact lenses, featuring brands like MyDay, Clariti and Biofinity, which are also sold at Costco.

You’ll spend $58.99 on a 90-count box of the Kirkland Signature product at Costco. In comparison, Walmart.com lists a 90-count box of MyDay daily disposable contact lenses for $82.

If you buy contact lenses from Costco online, they will verify your prescription before filling your order; you can speed up this process by uploading a picture of your current prescription to your website.

The verification process may take up to eight additional business hours.

They do not ship contact lenses to Arkansas.

Confirmed.

America’s biggest seafood company is responsible for a Kirkland Signature brand of fish oil, according to a couple of class action lawsuits.

In 2018, a case was filed against Costco and Trident Seafoods, alleging that Kirkland Signature Wild Alaskan Fish Oil contained less than half of the omega fatty acids that the labeling claims. A similar suit was filed in 2017 as well (this was dismissed less than two months later).

Costco has changed its packaging since the 2018 lawsuit. In its reporting on the court case, Truth in Advertising mentioned that the brand promised 330 milligrams of omega-3 fatty acids. The current Kirkland Signature fish oil sold by Costco says it provides 300 milligrams.

The Seattle Times says Trident Seafoods also manufactures a fish oil supplement for Sam’s Club and BJ’s.

The seafood giant sells products under its own brand name, as well as crabmeat and shellfish alternatives under the Louis Kemp Crab Delights brand and supplements under the Pure Alaska Omega brand.

Confirmed.

Turns out those addictive packs of chocolate-covered nuts you grab at Costco to snack on your drive home come from the “manufacturers of the finest chocolates since 1939.”

A 2013 issue of The Costco Connection magazine reported that Costco gets its Kirkland Signature chocolate through Blommer Chocolate Company, the largest cocoa processor and chocolate ingredient supplier in North America.

Together, Costco and Blommer developed a sustainability program for cocoa sourcing in West Africa’s Ivory Coast, where most of the store’s chocolate comes from.

According to The Costco Connection,the farming agreement ensures a high quality and traceable product while providing fair wages, education and other services to local communities.

Blommer hasn’t been content to rest on its chocolate-covered laurels.

One of their sustainability efforts included becoming the first cocoa producer to offer 100% RSPO-certified, mass balance palm oil in the U.S., according to a 2013 press release.

On their website, they also list goals about their environmental impact, prosperity and empowering the farmers they work with.

Confirmed.

You can still serve your guests in style with hors d’oeuvres made from a Kirkland Signature cheese.

Normandy-based Isigny Ste-Mère exports its butters, creams and cheeses around the world and provides Costco with its store brand brie.

Isigny says it produces its brie with the “best Normandy milks” that are collected every 48 hours, seeded with lactic starter cultures, molded, drained and dry-salted and then ripened on wood shelves for at least seven days.

All Isigny Ste-Mére products, including their brie, are made with Normandy milk, which is famous for its richness of cream and amount of vitamins.

Before the milk gets fermented into cheese, the dairy stores it in reception tanks for 48 hours before putting it through a series of quality tests.

The Costco Connection describes Kirkland Signature Isigny Ste-Mère Brie as a double-cream brie with a 60% butterfat content and “mushroomy notes.” Isigny suggests cutting the top off, layering on some honey and raw sugar, then sticking it under the broiler for a delicious brûléed brie.

Looks likely.

It’s clear that winemaker Pierre Brissy is behind the 2019 Kirkland Signature Chablis Premier Cru; his name’s on the back of the bottle.

Brissy is a maître de chai — or, “cellar master” — for major French producer Jean-Marc Brocard.

The chablis is aged 12 months in stainless steel tanks and features lemon citrus and white floral notes.

The 2018 bottle was made by Odile Van Der Moere. As of 2020, Van Der Moere was also reported as a cellar master for Brocard, where she worked for over 20 years.

And if you take a look at the ammonite logo on the Kirkland chablis, it bears a suspicious resemblance to the one on the Jean-Marc Brocard bottles.

Independent reviews love the 2019 Kirkland Signature Series Premier Cru Chablis. The Costco Wine Blog praised its unoaked style, its medium gold body with fruity notes and its price point.

If you like white wines, it is apparently the perfect chablis for summertime.

Confirmed.

Kirkland Signature’s dark and fruity Côtes du Rhône Villages makes no secret of its French producer. Just read the description on the back of the bottle.

It adds that only one-fifth of the wine produced in the region is pure enough to earn the Côtes du Rhône Villages designation, and Patrick Lesec’s fruity and chocolate-y concoction stands up to the test.

The white wine features notes of black plum and blackberry and its Chardonnay grapes are grown in Kimmeridgian soil, which is a blend of limestone and clay and allegedly provides the wine with its minerality.

According to Regal Wines, an American importer, Lesec does not grow his own grapes but handpicks wineries to work with and dictates the ingredients and method of production.

It gets mostly average ratings from different reviewers, though, with drinkers reacting to its bold, tannic taste, according to its page on the website Vivino. The Costco Wine Blog found the flavors to be a bit disconnected from each other.

Confirmed.

Unlike the “Parmesan” you sprinkle out of a can, the name Parmigiano Reggiano can only be applied to hard cheeses made in certain regions of Italy and subject to strict standards.

Anyone trying to pass off their product as the genuine article can expect a visit from the Consorzio del Formaggio Parmigiano-Reggiano.

The back of Kirkland’s parm shows the 24-month aged cheese is “specially selected” by Formaggi Zanetti, an Italian company that exports cheeses around the world.

Costco currently also sells a shredded Kirkland Signature Aged Parmigiano Reggiano Cheese that comes in one-pound jars — however this product doesn’t feature the Formaggi Zanetti name.

Customers mostly love it, if their Amazon reviews are to be believed, with 79% of customers giving the shredded version five stars. It’s perfect if you want to eat Parmesan as part of your breakfast, lunch and dinner; or if you own an Italian restaurant.

Looks likely.

After filing for bankruptcy in 2009, California’s Humboldt Creamery was sold to competitor Crystal Creamery and started selling its products nationwide through retailers like Walmart.

ABC’s KRCR News reported in 2016 that Humboldt has been manufacturing vanilla ice cream for Costco under their Kirkland Signature house brand.

However, Humboldt Creamery’s vanilla ice cream has also appeared under its own name at Costco, and both products have disappeared from store shelves at times — so the supplier situation may not have settled yet.

Reviews of the Kirkland Signature product seem fairly positive. “Tried it for the first time yesterday. I’m never buying Häagen-Dazs vanilla again. So rich and creamy with a strong vanilla flavor,” writes dontcarebare on Reddit.

Reddit is the place for heated ice cream discussions. User garnetblack67 argued that Kirkland Signature vanilla ice cream is the best out of comparable brands due to objective measurements like its density. Kirkland’s ice cream was definitely the densest, at 108 grams per half cup, followed by Häagen-Dazs with 101 grams.

Confirmed.

This Kirkland white stems from a New Zealand winery established by “three generations of women in wine.”

The Kirkland Signature Ti Point Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc bottles point to winemaker Tracy Haslam of the Ti Point winery. Some bottles bear the similar crossed leaf logo.

The name Ti Point refers to a peninsula in northern New Zealand, the home of the company’s first vineyard, but the winery has since expanded to the Hawke’s Bay and Marlborough regions.

The Kirkland Signature product features grapefruit, jalapeno pepper, white flowers, lemon zest, kumquat and green-apple flavors, according to a review from The Seattle Times.

If “jalapeno” caught your attention in that description, you would not be alone.

Wine analysts ETS Labs explain that the scent or taste of peppers in your wine are a result of methoxypyrazine in the grape skin — often known simply as pyrazines.

The pyrazine levels in grapes are tested before harvest, and lend a desirable “grassy” flavor to white wines and a non-desirable flavor to reds.

Confirmed.

Websites including Dog Food Insider claim that Kirkland Signature Dog Food is actually manufactured by Diamond Pet Foods, also known as Schell and Kampeter, Inc.

That might not be enough evidence on its own, but in 2012 the Kirkland brand was part of a recall for Diamond dog foods following a salmonella outbreak at Diamond’s production plant in South Carolina. Costco and the Kirkland brand were both named in a class-action lawsuit.

There’s been no word of a break with Diamond following the incident, and the Kirkland brand remains popular with pet lovers.

“Well, the Kirkland adult chicken, rice and vegetables dog food is equivalent to the Diamond Natural dog food; that’s what we feed our dog. We asked our vet about Kirkland over other brands for our sensitive-stomach lab and the vet actually recommended it,” writes Concerned-23 on Reddit.

Dog Food Advisor published an analysis of Diamond Naturals’ dry kibble and confirmed that it derives most of its animal protein from chicken meal and fresh chicken, while its recipe analysis concluded it would give your furry friend 36% of their protein, 28% of their fat and 29% of their carbs.

Kirkland Signature usually includes their Association of American Feed Control Officials (AAFCO) nutritional profile on their labels wherever possible. In order for a dog food to be called “complete and balanced” on its packaging, it needs to meet the standards set by the AAFCO.

Confirmed.

A good night’s sleep is amongst the many things Costco has to offer. Their Kirkland Signature mattresses are available for purchase in both Queen and King size, on their own as well as as a mattress set. While these mattresses are exclusive to Costco’s brand, they are actually made by mattress retailer Stearns and Foster — and they state it upfront on the website.

Stearns and Foster is a mid-luxury mattress brand that is owned and operated by Sealy. While Costco also sells Sealy mattresses, it is the Stearns and Foster Lakeridge mattresses that are adorned by the Kirkland Signature label.

The mattress hails positive reviews from customers. Reddit user jtbuffmire shared, “Never loved a bed more. It’s held up super well and is a really nice combo of soft and firm. Girlfriend likes it more than her more expensive bed (that’s too soft). Would readily buy again.”

Looks likely.

Kirkland’s Signature Organic Tortilla Chips were once made by Mission Foods Co. In fact, the brand’s logo was stamped right there on the packaging for all to see.

When the packaging for the product changed, it no longer featured Mission Foods’ logo alongside Costco’s and the two-pound bag of tortilla chips got a new, more colorful look.

It’s hard to say whether the product has actually changed beyond its new appearance, but long time fans of the tortilla chips seem to still be enjoying them just as much.

A few years back, when the tortilla chips started appearing in the new packaging on Costco shelves, Reddit user PeacefulKnightmare shared, “These are the exact same product with a new packaging. My warehouse had them stacked on top of each other because we still have a bunch of the old bags still in stock.”

Another Redditor, Jamieson22, was pleased with the “new packaging for the best tortilla chips ever.”

Confirmed.

Buying frozen fruit can often be more cost effective than buying it fresh — it lasts longer, and if you’re shopping in the right place, it comes in large quantities. We all know Costco is king when it comes to bulk shopping, and this does not exclude fruit.

The Kirkland Signature Organic Blueberries are Grade A berries with no preservatives, sourced and individually frozen by the Scenic Fruit Company. This three-pound bag of frozen blueberries is available for $10.69 at Costco — just imagine how many smoothies and muffin batches that could make you.

Growing their berries in the Pacific Northwest, the Scenic Fruit Company is one of the leading bulk ingredient suppliers of frozen blueberries in the world. But they don’t come without their shortfalls.

In the fall of 2019, these frozen blueberries were actually recalled due to potential foreign objects — the object was speculated to be glass. But since this blip, they have continued to safely sell their blueberries at Costco under the Kirkland Signature brand.

*Confirmed

It’s no secret that Nature’s Path makes Kirkland Signature’s Ancient Grains granola. In fact, it’s right there on the label.

Nature’s Path is known for their organic breakfast and snack foods. According to their website, the family-owned company was founded in 1985, and is now the largest certified organic breakfast and snack company in North America.

The Oxford Handbook of Food, Water and Society notes that Costco is the largest retailer of organic food in the United States, bolstered by the sale of products from brands like Nature’s Path. The fact that Nature’s Path has expanded its business into multinational stores, while remaining independent, speaks to the strength of this Canadian company.

Nature’s Path is committed to environmental causes, and this extends beyond simply organic farming. According to the company’s sustainability report, they’re the only company that has multinational locations that are Zero Waste Certified, and aim to use only 100% reusable, recyclable, or compostable packaging by 2025.

Looks likely.

According to a Bausch & Lomb customer service representative, if you use Kirkland Signature Contact Solution, you are in fact using Bausch & Lomb’s Biotrue contact solution.

Bausch & Lomb’s Biotrue contact lens solution is the number 1 best selling contact lens solution on Amazon, according to the online retailer’s website. You can remain confident that you’re getting the same quality product when you pick up the Kirkland Signature brand.

Bausch & Lomb’s website highlights some of the company’s many achievements. With a history going back more than 150 years, Bausch & Lomb not only makes contact lens solution, but also has a long legacy of innovation that includes Ray-Ban sunglasses and camera lenses.

The company also won an honorary Academy Award in 1954 for their contribution to the advancement of the motion picture industry. The company’s Facebook page points out that they won the Oscar for the CinemaScope lens, which propelled the widescreen filmmaking format.

Looks likely

When looking at Costco’s Kirkland Signature Parchment Paper, customers will likely notice a red circular logo for PaperChef Inc. They’ll also notice the motto, “The Art of Cooking.”

There are no press releases of any official statements linking Kirkland and PaperChef, but if you visit PaperChef’s website, you will notice the same logo and slogan.

As stated by PaperChef on its website:

“The service and all contents, including but not limited to text, images, graphics or code are the property of PaperChef Inc. and are protected by copyright, trademarks, database and other intellectual property rights.”

PaperChef also states that its service may contain links to third-party websites or services and that it has no control over, and assumes no responsibility for them.

PaperChef was founded in 2010 by Scott Miller and Bill Benson, who were passionate about creating a dedicated brand of parchment paper products.

The parchment paper is also sold at Walmart or Amazon.

Confirmed

It’s Kosher, pure butter, contains no artificial colors or preservatives, and it’s a product of Scotland. That’s how Costco is describing their scrumptious selection of Walkers shortbread cookies, a delightful treat.

For Costco, this one also falls under, “Kirkland Signature Walkers Premium Shortbread Selection.”

Costco’s website says that the product is produced by Walker’s Shortbread Ltd. It also says the shortbread cookies, which are based on a traditional recipe, are baked in the “secluded village of Aberlour, Speyside, in the heart of the Scottish Highlands.”

According to the site, Walkers Shortbread has been located in Aberlour for over 100 years.

The company currently operates four factories in Aberlour, and two in nearby Elgin. The original village bakery in Aberlour has been converted to a test bakery for new product development.

It isn’t only Costco that’s selling this product. The cookies are now sold in over 60 countries around the world according to Walkers website.

Denied.

If you’ve purchased Kirkland Signature Dental Chews in the past, and are curious about who manufactures them, you’re not alone.

When you look at the shape, you might notice similarities with Greenies Dental Treats. But while the two products appear similar, a representative for Greenies stated that they are not, in fact, the producer of the Costco product.

Representatives from six other major dental chew producers also stated that they are not the producers of the product. According to an email exchange, Costco doesn’t disclose the makers of any of their Kirkland Signature products.

Kirkland Signature Dental Chews can be great for pets with certain health needs, since they are grain and gluten free (according to the packaging). But unlike Greenies, Costco’s dental chews haven’t been accepted by the Veterinary Oral Health Council (VOHC) — as stated on Greenies website.

So the question remains, who does make the Kirkland Signature Dental Chews?

Looks likely

Polyvinyl Films Inc. is the company behind the brand Stretch-Tite plastic films, which is the product name found on Kirkland’s “Signature Stretch-Tite Plastic Food Wrap.”

“Stretch-Tite,” with its yellow and purple packages, is sold at other grocery stores such as Walmart, or online on Amazon and Ebay according to Stretch-Tite’s website, stretchtite.com. People can also order the product directly from the website.

Both Costco and Ebay display Stretch-Tite® as a copyrighted product.

One can safely conclude that Costco has co-branded Polyvinyl Films’ product.

According to a 2014 article by British newspaper, The Telegram, Polyvinyl Films is based in Sutton, Massachusetts. It was an offshoot of Indusol Inc., founded in 1953 by Tom Connor, John Connor and John W. Baldwin, the current vice-president's grandfather.

Stretch-Tite’s site says it supplies retailers, and The Telegram article says it supplies Costco too.

Aside from Stretch-Tite and Freeze-Tite (for food packaging for everyday consumers), Polyvinyl Films also produces film for medical use, according to a Bloomberg listing.

Founded by Princess Marcella Borghese in 1956, the bestselling Italian makeup line also sells products through the Kirkland Signature brand.

As highlighted in the Princess’ obituary, when Marcella Fazi married into the noble Roman family, she married into a family that had made their own cosmetics for generations. Princess Marcella Borghese Inc. began by introducing a line of eight lipsticks.

Not one to remain at arm’s length, Princess Borghese remained involved with the business up until her death in 2002.

The Costco website lists multiple Borghese products available to purchase under the Kirkland Signature name. Whether you’re looking for face serum, eyeliner, wrinkle relaxer, or other beauty product, Costco offers you the high quality Borghese products at a great price.

Confirmed

As stated on the Costco website, the Kirkland Signature Côtes de Provence Rosé Wine is produced by Olivier Sumerie. Sumeire is a winemaker with a rich history that can be traced back eight generations. This Hachette Guide-rated vineyard also makes the Kirkland Signature Côtes de Provence Rośe Wine.

The Famille Sumeire won four medals for their Rosés at the 2022 Global Rosé Masters — as highlighted on their website — so you know you’re getting a reputable product from this Provence vineyard.

If you want to get your hands on a case of this bright and fruity rosé, you’ll want to act fast. The Costco website doesn’t list it as available presently, and it’s known to move quickly from the shelves when it is in stock according to online reviews.

Confirmed

If you enjoy Mediterranean food, you can be assured that you’re getting a genuine product with Costco’s Kirkland Signature brand. A recent food recall on Costco’s website reveals that Kirkland Signature Roasted Pine Nut Hummus is made by Cedar’s Mediterranean Foods.

As stated on their website, Cedar’s Foods is a Mediterranean food company that takes pride in making authentic foods. A Non-GMO Project verified company, Cedar’s Foods uses simple and pure ingredients to make their products.

According to LinkedIn, the business was founded in 1985 and is one of the nation’s leading hummus producers. A 2019 report by Business Wire notes that the company has a production target of 208 million pounds of hummus and Mediterranean foods every year.

Confirmed

The Kirkland Signature brand name appears across a wide variety of products, including Nitrile Medical Examination Gloves. Examination gloves can be used for a variety of purposes, including patient examinations and care, blood tests, or for everyday sanitary use.

If you’re wondering who manufactures these gloves, then wonder no more. The product is manufactured by AMD Medicom, as confirmed by a representative for the company.

Medicom was founded in 1988 as a response to the health care community’s need for personal protective equipment during the AIDS crisis. WIth over 30 years of business experience, the Canadian company now operates on three continents.

The company prides itself on being a reliable supplier of infection prevention and control products, as emphasized in their press releases.

Confirmed

As stated on their website, Belmont Meats has been providing the public with burger products since 1966. Their products can be found in stores throughout America and internationally, either as Belmont branded offerings or as private label.

According to a 2019 recall notice from Costco's site, Belmont Meats manufactures the Kirkland Signature Harvest Burger for Costco. The product was found to possibly contain pieces of metal and received a food recall warning from Health Canada.

Belmont Meats lists a variety of burger products on their website, including turkey and veggie patties.

The company further claims to have a dominant role in North America’s burger industry.

Belmont prides themself on focusing on burgers, hoping to create a high-quality product that flourishes within its niche.

Confirmed

Kirkland Signature Cookware is manufactured at one of Meyer Kitchenware’s associate factories, a representative from Meyer confirms.

The Kirkland Signature cookware isn’t produced in the main factory. Instead, it’s made in an overseas facility that meets Meyer’s manufacturing and ethical standards. The representative from the company also emphasizes that the product ships and is warrantied by the main Meyer office in Canada.

Meyer is one of the largest cookware makers in the world, the company’s website states.

Not only has Meyer produced high quality cookware since 1979 under their own name, but they also produce cookware for various celebrity chefs. In total, they produce more than 100 cookware lines. Their products are found in over 30 countries.

Confirmed

This hand trimmed kosher fish is distributed by Costco Wholesale Corporation, with Indonesia being the country of origin.

In 2010, Intrafish reported that Costco was going to rebrand the tilapia loins farmed by Regal Springs.

“Getting Kirkland is an honor,” said Regal Springs president Mike Picchietti. “You don’t make Kirkland until certain parameters are met.”

The collaboration was inspired by the strong sales of the tilapia loins, which jumped from one million pounds in 2006 to six million pounds in 2010, according to Intrafish.

The connection is also confirmed by a 2014 Costco Connection magazine article.

On Regal Spring’s website, the Florida-headquartered company lists Costco as a retail partner, alongside companies such as Walmart and Loblaws.

According to the Girard Winery website, Glenn Hugo moved to Napa Valley in 2003 to pursue his dream of becoming a winemaker.

Hugo worked with Provenance Vineyards but the bulk of his experience came from Girard. He started with Girard as a harvest intern, before being promoted to cellar master, and then assistant winemaker. He later earned his current title of Girard Winemaker.

As a winemaker, he has produced award-winning wines with Girard Winery in Napa Valley, California.

Some of the wines Hugo has produced include bottles for the Kirkland Signature Brand, according to the Costco website.

One of Hugo's offerings include the 2019 Signature Series Rutherford Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley, which is described as having a mocha powder flavor, combined with black and red fruits.

Confirmed

According to LinkedIn, Almark foods started in the 1970s and is now the leading provider of hard-boiled egg products for retail businesses.

In 2019, a product recall for Kirkland Signature 2 count Organic Hard-cooked Eggs revealed that Almark Foods was the producer of the product.

According to a 2021 press release, Michael Foods — owned by Post Holdings Inc — acquired Almark.

According to their website, Michael Foods has over 100 years of history, starting out as a small family business in Elizabeth, New Jersey. Michael Foods was officially formed in 1987, and is now the largest producer of “value-added” eggs in America.

Beyond their retail products, Michael Foods provides foodservice solutions for restaurants, schools and health care providers.

@Page

Rayovac

Confirmed

A product recall from 2014 reveals that Kirkland Signature hearing aid batteries are manufactured by Rayovac.

According to the company website, James B. Ramsay founded Rayovac — originally called The French Battery Company — in 1906. The company’s name was changed to Rayovac in 1934, and continues to produce batteries in the state of Wisconsin.

The company’s partnerships stretch back to the First World War, when Rayovac was enlisted to produce batteries for the war effort. A Rayovac battery also powered Space Shuttle Endeavor for its maiden voyage.

In 1937, Rayovac’s Arthur Wengel patented a wearable vacuum tube hearing aid, the first of its kind. In 2008, the company introduced a mercury-free hearing aid battery.

In 2018, Energizer Holdings Inc. acquired Rayovac through its parent company, Spectrum Brands Holdings, according to a press release.

** Confirmed **

Following possible listeria contamination, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency issued a 2014 warning for Kirkland Signature Grilled Chicken Breast Strips, according to CTV News.

The strips were sold in multiple provinces in Canada, including Ontario and Quebec. CFIA test results led to worries of listeria. While listeria does not always cause meat to look or smell spoiled, it can lead to sickness. CFIA warned that other products could be recalled as well.

While the CFIA “advised” consumers not to have the breast strips, the recall was actually issued by Freshouse Foods, the original maker of the product. The original recall notice said that there were no reported illnesses at the time.

The Freshouse breast strips are now discontinued.

Confirmed

In 2017, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency recalled Kirkland’s Organic Fortified Soy Beverage Original, according to the Government of Canada’s website.

It is never a good idea to drink from a puffy carton, since the swelling can be a sign of microbiological growth inside the container, according to eatingwell.com.

According to the recall notice, the original brand was Quebec-based Nutrisoya Foods Inc. Nutrisoya is best known as the maker of Nutrisoy, an oat milk beverage.

According to the Nutrisoya website, Nutrisoya was founded in 1996 in Singapore. By 1999 it had the industry distinction of being the first brand to introduce a high-calcium milk variant.

In 2014, Nutrisoya rebranded and changed its name to Natura foods, to represent its reach beyond soy beverages. According to Natura’s website, Nutrisoya first began operations in 1992 as a producer of pasteurized tofu.

Confirmed

Since 1944, Olde Thompson has been producing dry spices and seasonings, according to the company website.

The Oxnard, California-based company was founded by George S. Thompson, who had recently retired from military duty in Europe. Olde Thompson is now the world’s largest manufacturer of salt and pepper mills.

A 2014 product recall revealed that one of Olde Thompson’s products was rebranded as Kirkland Signature Malabar Black Pepper. The recall was due to a possible salmonella risk.

Olde Thompson offers organic and kosher certified products, and has garnered a reputation as an environmentally-conscious company.

Their commitment to the environment is further demonstrated through their use of solar panels.

The company’s website states that newly-installed panels will produce 75% of the business’s energy requirements.

Confirmed

In 2012, XL Foods Inc. was subject to the largest meat recall in Canadian history, according to CBC. In total, more than 1.8 million kilograms of beef were recalled within the U.S. and Canada.

According to the recall, one of the labels that products were sold under was the Kirkland Signature brand.

Both the USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service and the Canadian Food Inspection Agency discovered E. coli on raw meat trimmings from XL Foods.

In total, 18 people tested positive for E. coli in Canada. The recall of the tainted meat triggered a lawsuit that resulted in a $4 million(CAD) settlement.

In 2013, JBS Canada acquired XL Foods, but did not assume any of the company’s debt.

Confirmed

According to the company website, Wonderful Pistachios is the largest grower and processor of pistachios and almonds in the world. The pistachios are all grown and processed in California, and are all certified kosher by the Orthdox Union. The pistachios are also certified halal by the Islamic Food and Nutrition Council of America.

In 2016, a voluntary recall of Kirkland Signature California Pistachios revealed that Wonderful Pistachios is the original producer.

The pistachio producer’s parent company, The Wonderful Company, also operates companies such as FIJI Water and POM Wonderful.

In September 2022, Wonderful Pistachios became an official snack of the first North American Super Smash Bros. circuit (part of a professional gaming event), officially licensed by Nintendo.

Confirmed

A company that provided Costco with frozen and dried fruit, also supplied the U.S. Army.

Albany-based Oregon Freeze Dry was behind Kirkland Signature Real Sliced Fruit.

According to the company website, Oregon Freeze Dry opened in 1963, initially drying sliced fruit for use in breakfast cereals. During the Vietnam War, the company’s fruit served as part of Long Range Patrol rations for U.S. soldiers. OFD’s resume also includes the Apollo space program.

In 2014, OFD Inc. recalled 59,780 cases of these fruit slices — which are exclusively produced for Costco Wholesale Stores — according to recallowl.com. The recall cited the possibility of salmonella contamination.

As of 2021, OFD now freeze dries products such as pharmaceutical chemicals, medical devices and enzymes.

Still want to shop at Costco knowing it's secrets? Read on for some products you won't find on their shelves anymore.

1. Half-sheet cakes

Add Costco’s iconic half-sheet cakes to the growing list of things COVID-19 has canceled this year.

The warehouse chain shelved these sweet slabs in the spring of 2020. A staple at birthday parties, the half-sheet cakes were an inexpensive way to feed around 50 people a pop. The cakes came in two flavors — a white cake filled with 2 pounds of vanilla cheesecake mousse, topped with white buttercream frosting, and a chocolate version filled with chocolate mouse instead. You could even customize the cake with a special design or message.

The company informed Delish that it has no immediate plans to revive the fan favorite. Instead, Costco has been directing people to its 10-inch round cakes, which serve about a dozen people, as a more suitable option for today’s socially distanced gatherings.

A Costco representative replied to one saddened customer on Facebook with the explanation: "To help limit personal contact and create more space for social distancing, Costco has reduced service in some departments."

It came as a shock to us all. To make room for more healthy items on its food court menu, Costco got rid of its Polish dogs in 2018.

The decision outraged loyal customers, who took to Twitter to protest under the hashtag #SaveThePolishDog. "Hey @Costco if I wanted a healthier vegan friendly option I wouldn’t be at your food court ... I go to Costco just for your hot dog lunch some days #SaveThePolishDog" tweeted @JanaKeck.

A Change.org petition to save the sausage even generated over 16,500 signatures.

Sadly, their efforts were in vain, and Polish dogs are still missing from the menu.

But don’t fret, friends. You can still snag the regular, all-beef frankfurter, and Costco’s $1.50 hot dog and soda combo is in no danger of disappearing any time soon. You could even consider making a trip up north — Costco Canada has no plans as yet to eliminate the Polish dog from its food court menu.

For better or for worse, Costco stopped production of its Kirkland Signature Light Beer in 2018.

The 48-packs sold for $22 — less than 50 cents per can. Many mourned the end of an era. "Costco stopping sales of Kirkland light beer is like McDonalds not giving toys with the happy meals. THIS. IS. ANARCHY," tweeted @KalypsoPuppy.

One California man even made a viral commercial for the beer in his backyard back in 2017.

While the beer had a cult following of party-goers on a budget, it certainly had its critics as well.

One reviewer on RateBeer famously compared the brew’s smell to a “urine-soaked diaper sitting on a piping-hot radiator.” The beer has an average rating of 2.45 out of 5 on the website and with feedback like that, it’s no surprise Costco didn’t keep it around.

Although the light beers are long gone, you may still be able to grab a $20 craft-brewed variety pack with pale, blonde, brown and India pale ales.

This glorious mountain of rich, chocolatey goodness was abruptly abandoned by Costco without explanation, leaving customers confused and distraught.

The four-layer chocolate cake was packed with frosting and garnished with chocolate shavings, weighing in at seven pounds. It cost $16.99, according to food and drink website The Daily Meal. No one knows why Costco stopped making it, only that it vanished some time in 2019 and now remains the stuff of legends.

The loss even inspired a petition on Change.org, which garnered more than 8,000 signatures.

In 2021, however, the warehouse club introduced a mini version of the beloved bakery item — the Mini All American Cakes, which come in a pack of six and cost $7.99.

"Bigger than a cupcake, unless it's a super jumbo cupcake. Bigger than the Costco-sized muffins. Same size as the mini carrot cakes they had this past spring," writes cveyes on Reddit.

Costco’s chocolate frozen yogurt is another item that didn’t make the cut when the warehouse was revamping the food court menu, though you can still get the vanilla flavor.

San Luis Obispo’s The Tribune first reported in 2018 that a Costco in the California county had discontinued the chocolate yogurt and it seems as though other locations followed.

Loyal customers were disappointed, to say the least. "Heck, I'd even be happy if they did chocolate and vanilla on alternating days. I would gladly plan my Costco trips on an odd/even yogurt schedule," writes tred16 on Reddit.

Despite the 400 petitioners on Change.org who have refused to accept the transition, it seems Costco doesn’t plan on bringing it back.

The warehouse club apparently swapped this tasty treat for a healthier option: an acai bowl with banana chips, granola, blueberries and strawberry slices. Fair enough, since MyFitnessPal says that a 12-ounce serving of the chocolate fro-yo was 390 calories.

In 2018, Bloomberg published a piece that claimed millennials were speedily killing off American cheese, so it comes as little surprise that Costco discontinued this Kirkland Signature product.

Unlike the still-popular Kraft Singles, Kirkland Signature cheese slices weren’t individually wrapped. Consumers disagreed about whether the convenience would be worth the wasteful packaging. Considering the texture of American cheese, it could become a pretty sticky situation.

Many felt that the store brand product beat its name brand competitor in taste, but in the end Kraft has survived where Kirkland has not.

“Sales were dropping on the KS stuff,” writes Costco Panda, a self-professed insider, on Reddit. “Down several million dollars a year. Made more sense to increase our purchase volume from Kraft and, in turn, get a better price.”

The cheese came in five-pound packages with 120 slices each. Oddly enough, the Kirkland brand American cheese is still listed on Costco Australia’s Business Center website.

A Change.org petition with over 85,000 signatures may have led Costco to drop this Mosanto-owned weed-killer from store shelves.

Founder of Moms Across America, Zen Honeycutt, created a petition calling for the retailer to drop Roundup, following billion dollar lawsuits that claimed the herbicide caused cancer. Honeycutt announced on her website that she had confirmed with three people from Costco headquarters that Roundup would no longer be sold in American warehouses.

A Costco representative told People magazine that the company did not “have a statement available about the decision.”

Bayer, the company that owns Monsanto, maintains that Roundup is safe to use. Yet the World Health Organization classifies Roundup’s active ingredient, glyphosate, as “probably carcinogenic to humans,” and numerous U.S. cities have either banned or restricted the substance.

It may or may not be dangerous for humans, but the U.S. Food and Drug Administration reports that pets who ingest or even touch plants that have recently been sprayed with products using glyphosate are at risk of developing digestive or intestinal issues.

In the same year that Costco cleared many fattening items from its food court menu, it also removed this healthy item from its store shelves.

The extra-lean turkey patties, clocking in at only 200 calories each, were a welcome alternative to the beef variety, and they were a popular choice for customers looking to drop a few pounds.

Healthline wrote an in-depth comparison of the nutritional value between three ounces of ground beef and the same amount of fat-free ground turkey. They determined that, in addition to having fewer calories, the turkey had equal or greater amounts of protein than the beef — which is an important factor for weight loss.

"They were very lean and an excellent source of protein. I used to eat them all the time and look for them often ... I guess Costco just wasn't selling enough of them," writes DonaldsOrangeBeanBag on Reddit.

A concerned citizen began a petition on Change.org to bring the product back, but there has been no word on the turkey burgers’ return.

Thankfully, the reviews for the Columbus turkey burgers currently sold at Costco have been pretty positive.

Although this food court favorite was only available at select Costco locations, fans grieved when the retailer swept grease aside to make room for healthier meals.

"Costco may giveth and Costco may taketh away," writes sandbrah on Reddit.

The sandwich was crammed with juicy beef dripping in sweet BBQ sauce and topped with a creamy coleslaw. At $4.99, however, it probably didn’t get the same following as cheaper items on the menu.

Fortune reported in 2018 that “at least some” warehouses had dropped the BBQ beef brisket sandwich, however Kitchn suggested in 2019 that it occasionally resurfaces as a seasonal item.

Redditor RTK9, who claims to have worked in the food court, said, "I know this is an unpopular opinion, but ... I say good riddance. That sandwich was more of a pain in the butt to prep and go through all the procedures for than making 50 chocolate nut covered ice cream bars in a row. That, and the amount of fat in it on the label was astounding."

Costco got rid of this delectable dessert way back in 2013, but seasoned shoppers remember it well.

The vanilla ice cream bar, dipped in chocolate and encrusted in toasted almonds, sold for only $1.50 at the food court.

Some speculate that rising almond and dairy prices may have prompted Costco to remove the treat from its menu, although the company has been known to sell at a loss with its roast chickens.

"I kind of figured the main reason was because of the labor intensity — unwrap the bar, dip it, wait to cool, roll it in almonds, wrap it. Not like the pizza, which was 'shove into an oven and then sell six slices.' Don't care, double the price, hire dedicated staff and assist with dipping robots. I want my damn dipped ice cream bars with almonds!!!" writes PinochetIsMyHero on Reddit.

You could also find Kirkland Signature vanilla almond ice cream bars in the freezer section, but fans of the food court version claim they simply couldn’t compare.

An eight-month Greenpeace campaign helped convince Costco to launch a sustainable seafood policy in 2011 — and drop several wild-caught species from its seafood section.

“Costco must use its massive buying power to leverage positive change in our oceans,” the environmental group wrote. Greenpeace says its "Oh-No-Costco" campaign garnered more than 100,000 signatures.

The retailer no longer sells wild seafood species “that have been identified at great risk,” such as Atlantic cod and halibut, shark and Bluefin tuna. In 2019, Costco added some varieties of wild salmon to its list as well.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration — part of the U.S. Department of Commerce — states that the U.S. is recognized as a global leader in the space of sustainable seafood. There are laws determined by fishery management planning that dictate how seafood can be caught, and U.S. fisheries monitored, managed and legally enforced under national standards.

Some of you may or may not remember this one, depending on whether your Costco food court offered it.

Certain Costco locations served gelato in a variety of flavors like strawberry, chocolate, stracciatella, pistachio or mixed berry. They each cost $1.50 for a three-scoop waffle cone or $4.99 for a quart to go.

A petition on Change.org (with over 100 supporters) says Costco stopped offering gelato in 2015. CellSalesThrowaway2 on Reddit claims the food court favorite was just a trial offering on the menu that was deemed a failure and removed after a year or so.

While you may not find it freshly served in the food court any more, Costco does have several gelato options in the frozen grocery aisle. Mashed reported at the end of 2020 that Costco customers were thrilled with the Talenti Gelato Layers variety pack that the warehouse chain had just started to offer.

In 2009, Costco stopped carrying a Cuddle With Me doll that customers found racially offensive.

The dolls came in three different ethnicities — Caucasian, African American and Hispanic — and each was accompanied by a plush panda or monkey. A Costco member in North Carolina filed a complaint regarding the African American doll, which was paired with the monkey and a banana and wore a headband with the label “lil’ monkey."

Costco immediately pulled all of the sets that included the plush monkey out of its stores. Although the other versions were available for a while, Costco seems to have banished the collection entirely.

"As soon as it became clear to us that this toy item was offensive to some of our members, we decided to remove it from our warehouses," said former CEO Jim Sinegal in a statement.

The only dolls currently found on Costco’s website are twins: The set of pink, plush Baby Emma and Allie retail together for $19.97.

Costco’s known for its lenient return policy, but when a relaunch of its Kirkland Signature Performance One golf balls failed to meet the mark, the retailer ended up axing the product entirely.

The golf balls initially rolled out in 2016. Customers were delighted, but Acushnet Holdings Corp., owner of golf ball maker Titleist, was less so. The corporation claimed Costco’s product violated Titleist patents, and the two companies battled it out in a lawsuit.

The case was settled in 2018, and Costco pulled back its original product. The wholesaler debuted a new version of its Performance One golf balls soon after — however, plenty of customers complained about its lack of durability. Costco refunded buyers for both the product and shipping costs, even without returns.

It’s unknown whether the big-box giant plans to revamp and re-release the Performance One product once again. For now, the Kirkland Signature Three-Piece Urethane Cover Golf Ball Performance Plus is available.

In 2016, Costco briefly discontinued its Kirkland Signature 5-Pocket Jeans for men and then reintroduced them with “design improvements.”

However, fans of the original “dad jeans” were not pleased with the changes. A customer posting on Reddit argued the newer version was a poor substitute because of its thin material and different fit and design.

Costco seems to have canceled production of these jeans entirely (possibly replacing the Kirkland Signature brand with Urban Star), according to dozens of distraught commenters on Facebook.

"I've been wearing KJs for many years, and am dismayed they are no longer being carried. I don't really like to think about my clothing much, and they were reliable and wore pretty well. Sniff," wrote one commenter.

Costco still carries Kirkland Signature Men's Jeans; however, reviewers on the store’s website still fondly remember the 5-Pocket version.

Several retailers, including Costco, dropped Chaokoh coconut milk from shelves recently, after PETA accused the brand of using coconuts harvested through monkey labor.

PETA investigators claimed that Thai supplier Theppadungporn Coconut Co. sourced its coconut milk from facilities and farms using caged monkeys. The company denied the allegations, telling USA Today that its suppliers have signed memorandums of understanding that there’s no monkey labor at their farms.

In a letter to PETA’s president in September 2020, Costco Vice President of Corporate Food and Sundries Ken Kimble said the wholesale club was investigating its suppliers but would pull the product from store shelves for the time being.

The company has since issued no updates on whether it will resume selling the controversial brand.

A 2021 article from National Geographic states that even months after the controversy, farmers in Thailand were still using monkey labor to harvest their coconuts for distribution in the international market.

In 2020, Costco hatched a plan to only sell cage-free eggs in its stores across the globe as part of its animal welfare policy. However, it might take a few years to get there, depending on suppliers.

As of the 2020 fiscal year, 93.2% of the wholesaler’s eggs in U.S. stores were cage-free, but Costco has already achieved its 100% goal in France, Iceland, Spain and the U.K.

You can check your egg cartons for the cage-free certification before you purchase them. Kirkland Signature Organic Large Brown Eggs and Kirkland Signature Liquid Egg Whites are among the available cage-free Costco products.

Cage-free systems allow the hen to walk around, spread their wings and lay eggs in a nest, which is a major — and desperately needed — departure from the battery cage system. Battery cages are so small that the hens typically spend their lives confined to an area the size of a regular sheet of paper.

For over a decade, Costco used to publish and distribute its own handy cookbooks for members on Thanksgiving weekend, but it discontinued the tradition in 2015.

The Costco Way cookbooks were replaced by recipes straight from suppliers in the "Farm to Table” section of the Costco Connection e-zines, which get released each month.

The blogger behind The Costco Connoisseur was less than pleased by the swap, writing, “The only polite word that comes to mind to describe this is: LAME.”

In case you haven’t held on to your old copies, Costco cookbook devotees can still find archived copies by searching “Cooking the Costco Way" on the Costco Connection website.

If you still really want to buy a cookbook from the wholesale retailer, their website currently offers an exclusive edition of “The Barefoot Contessa Cookbook” from Ina Garten, which includes four bonus recipes. The cookbook was originally released in 1999, but Garten has since become something of a star on the Food Network.

Costco customers claim the Kirkland Signature peanut butter cups were good enough to rival Reese’s.

As one satisfied Amazon user put it: “Kirkland brand nails it. The peanut butter is super creamy. There is just the right amount of chocolate. This decadent marriage of chocolatey, salty creaminess is almost too good to be real. DO NOT have these in the house if you are on a diet.”

However, the beloved product is no longer listed on the store website, and fans bemoan that they’re no longer offered in stores either.

If you really need that peanut butter cup craving satisfied — in bulk — Costco has a number of options for fans of Reese’s original product and its many size variants.

The standard package of two cups comes in a box of 36, or if you’re really hungry you can grab a 24-count box of the 2.8 ounce King Cups. You can even get a 105-count box of individually wrapped mini cups for under $10.

This tasty instant pasta, stuffed with ricotta, asiago, parmesan and Grana Padano cheeses, was definitely a hit with customers, judging by the irate Facebook comments demanding its return.

Food blogger MelanieCooks declared the product tasted “just as good as the cheese ravioli in Italian restaurants” and that she wouldn’t be surprised if restaurants were serving the Kirkland Signature pasta at inflated prices.

No formal announcements were made regarding the ravioli’s regrettable departure, but the product isn’t listed on the Costco website, and customers say it’s been a long while since it was offered in-store.

While you may be missing this tasty ravioli, Costco does still have a wide variety of dried pasta available on their website. The standard wheat pasta comes in a multitude of shapes like spaghetti, fusilli and lasagna sheets. There are healthier options too, like cauliflower noodles, organic varieties and even quinoa-based vegan mac and cheese boxes.

Costco reportedly pulled Palmetto Cheese from shelves in 2020 after brand owner Brian Henry made a public Facebook post attacking a popular protest group.

The Post and Courier reports that the pimento cheese would no longer be carried in more than 120 U.S. Costco stores, and one Myrtle Beach location says the item has been discontinued and would not be re-ordered.

Costco has yet to comment on the product being removed. Henry told the news outlet that “Costco rotates items in and out during the course of the year. They will occasionally add and drop products as a matter of normal business ... We remain optimistic that Palmetto Cheese will be back on the shelves in the not too distant future.”

Henry made a public apology in September 2020 and said the company would be rebranding “to be more sensitive to cultural diversity,” according to MyrtleBeachOnline.

This popular product was probably phased out sometime in 2017 and plenty of displeased customers took to Facebook to request its return.

Made with plant extracts and lightly fragranced, the Kirkland Signature body lotion was a go-to for shoppers with dry and sensitive skin. “What's it going to take, Costco? I'll never get through winter without this terrific body lotion. Bring it back!” pleads Lilia A. Chacon on the social media platform.

The warehouse chain has no plans to bring the body lotion back to U.S. shelves in the near future, claiming it didn’t meet inventory sales targets. However, if you’re planning on making a trip across the border at some point, you can grab the product from a Canadian store.

Sensitive-skinned people who can’t take a trip to Canada for the Kirkland product will have to make do with the many options still available at the U.S. stores. Aveeno, Cetaphil and Weleeda all offer multi-packs of their top-selling body lotions through the wholesaler, and Sebamed’s Fragrance-Free Gentle Hydrating Lotion is a good option as well.

Costco stopped selling this type of snow tire in stores across the U.S. (except for Alaska) back in 2007 for environmental reasons.

While studded tires certainly make it easier to drive on icy streets, they can also cause serious damage to roads. Goodyear writes that while these studs are helpful in certain circumstances, they are not to be used when there is no snow or ice on the road.

According to the U.S. Tire Manufacturers Association, certain states — like Illinois and Wisconsin — have regulations that prohibit the use of studded tires for passenger vehicles entirely. Other states are permitted within certain weather conditions or timeframes, and some will allow studded tires on the roads only if the studs are rubber, not metal.

“Many manufacturers are moving away from studded tires because of the road damage they cause,” Costco’s corporate tire buyer Pat McClintock told The Spokesman-Review. He added that the studded tires could damage other tires during shipping, plus they didn’t sell as well as they used to.

Several big box retailers cut ties with MyPillow in 2021 and CEO Mike Lindell blames “cancel culture.”

An online petition requesting Amazon, Walmart, Costco, and Bed, Bath & Beyond to stop selling the bedding maker’s products has garnered over 110,000 signatures.

Costco initially told Newsweek that it would continue selling MyPillow products due to "contractual commitments to MyPillow that we intend to honor, as we seek to do with all of our suppliers." However, Lindell later told The New York Post that Costco would stop selling MyPillow merchandise after it sold through whatever inventory it had left in stock.

Costco hasn’t commented on the removal, but other retailers like Bed Bath & Beyond have pointed to declining sales when explaining their decision to drop MyPillow products from store shelves.

Lindell was suspended from Twitter in early 2021 for spreading disinformation regarding the 2020 presidential election, and he was banned again in May 2022, according to The Los Angeles Times.

Diapers are a big expense for parents, and it makes sense that they’d want to stock up on this essential in bulk. Unfortunately, Costco doesn’t make it easy to get large quantities of certain brands of diapers.

In August 2021, Costco ran a members-only sales event that limited the amount of Kirkland brand diapers that each customer was allowed to buy.

At the same time, an S.O.S went up on a Facebook group for Costco customers saying that they’d seen the “this product will be discontinued” star on the price tags of all Pampers brand diapers, according to Eat This, Not That.

Now, there are a number of baby hygiene products available on the Costco website, like baby wipes and pull-ups, but the only remaining diaper options are specifically Huggies or Kirkland, both of which are manufactured by Kimberly-Clark.

While they may not be the exact same product, it seems that Costco is sticking with the goods from that manufacturer only. There is no sign of Pampers anywhere on their website these days, and the brand may be gone from the warehouse shelves for good.

Kirkland’s Mediterranean blend of cooking oil was apparently so popular that when it was discontinued in early 2021, foodies started a Reddit subthread about how to recreate it in their own kitchens.

This blend, a mixture of canola, olive and grapeseed oils, has a smoking point of around 400 F, making it suitable for both cooking and in salad dressings. This versatility was part of the reason customers loved it.

Costco shoppers might be used to the “now you see it, now you don’t” merchandising strategy of the bulk store, but Costco hasn’t addressed publicly why they decided to stop carrying it.

While Costco’s website still offers a three-liter container of Kirkland pure olive oil and many other brands besides, the customer who wanted this particular blend will be left with more questions than answers.

And perhaps a messy kitchen as they try to figure out the right recipe for themselves.

To get your nicotine fix from Costco these days, you’ll only find cigarettes through their online Business Center delivery, which supplies smaller businesses with their inventory.

But it’s not totally news that you can’t find these items on the shelves lately — Costco has been slowly decreasing the number of U.S. stores that carry them for years.

A 2016 article by The Street reported that Costco started pulling tobacco products from their shelves a few years earlier, without any public fanfare.

A spokesperson for the company, speaking on an analysts’ call, said, “Tobacco is a very low-margin business, tends to have higher theft and is labor intensive in some cases (due to local municipality regulations) — further, we felt we could better use the space to merchandise other items.”

They never announced their decision publicly as press releases cost too much money, says the spokesperson.

The Street says that in 2016, there were 488 Costco stores in the U.S., but only 189 of them carried cigarettes. They now have 568 U.S. stores, and likely even fewer are carrying tobacco products in 2022.

The food court at Costco is the stuff of legend, with a perennial fan favorite being, of course, the hot dog and soft drink combo for $1.50.

An item less talked about but still greatly missed is Costco’s soft pretzel, specifically the cinnamon sugar kind. They sold for one dollar and were evidently replaced by the churro, according to Mashed.

While they have already been off the menu for a few years, fans continue to mourn their loss, and seem to vastly prefer them to the churros that were added to the menu instead.

One potential reason for their disappearance is the recent U.S. trend over the past several years toward promoting healthier foods. An entry for the dessert pretzel on My Fitness Pal says it has a whopping 554 calories and 77% of the average person’s daily recommended intake of carbohydrates.

But since the pretzel was replaced with the churro — not exactly a healthier option — it also could have come down to cost. Costco often watches the items that aren’t selling as much as they would like, and churros are easier and cheaper to produce than those delicious twisty treats.

This delightful French cheese might be Costco’s version of the Polkaroo — sometimes you see it, sometimes you don’t.

While it appears to be offered by different grocery delivery apps such as Instacart or Burpy as part of their wholesale service, Costco does not list it with their in-store inventory.

The cheese itself, which hails from the Franche-Comté region of France, is made from unpasteurized cow’s milk and is aged in the caves of the Alps for anywhere between four and 24 months.

The lack of pasteurization might have been the cheese’s downfall, as the CDC has previously issued a caution to the public about the risks associated with ingesting raw milk products, including some cheeses.

Maybe the risk was part of the attraction, as a Change.org petition from an upset fan began circulating in 2018, wanting this product back on store shelves. While the petitioner claimed victory, there is no evidence that the cheese actually reappeared.

You can get all kinds of protein bars at Costco, and even some tasty keto-friendly options if you shop online, but there’s one special bar that’s missing from the shelves.

Unfortunately, the Kirkland Signature cinnamon roll-flavored protein bars — named by Mashed as “the best tasting protein bars Costco has ever sold” — have disappeared from the store.

There are still Kirkland Signature protein bars in flavors like chocolate brownie, peanut butter chocolate chunk, and cookies and cream, but customers say they fall a little flat in comparison.

The 2020 review by Mashed says that the chocolate flavor has an unpleasant aftertaste, and while it’s probably a coincidence, Costco’s website mentions that the recipe for their bars recently got a refresh.

Their ingredient list promises four grams of fiber, five grams of sugar and 21 grams of protein per bar, as well as erythritol in the chocolate they use — which apparently has little to no aftertaste, but one Redditor who used it as part of their keto diet described its flavor as a “chemical fart.”

It seems it was only the cinnamon roll flavor that you could eat all day long, and they are nowhere to be found.

In the beginning of the pandemic, Costco shut down their food court. They’ve since been able to re-open, to the gratitude of many shoppers, but one item that did not return for the reopening was their combo pizza.

The combo, which was topped with veggies, sausage and pepperoni, satisfied both hunger and your wallet, only costing about $2 per slice.

It was so beloved by the Costco customer community that a couple petitions began circulating online in an attempt to bring the delicious combo back.

According to a former food court manager on Reddit, Costco initially turfed the offering because they were doing everything they could to cut costs, and the quality of the vegetables they were getting was not up to par.

The manager also believes it’s only a matter of time before the pizza comes back for an encore, but so far the menu has remained combo-free.

Sure, the pre-grated stuff is convenient, but have you ever had your pasta the traditional Italian way, preparing your Parmigiano Reggiano right at the time of cooking?

Once grated, parmesan cheese quickly loses its flavor, so the jarred, made-by-Kraft option that Costco currently sells doesn't even qualify for top parmesan cheese status.

The removal of this product might be due to supply chain issues, as some hopeful Redditors brought up in a thread about the disappearing cheese, but it has not returned to the shelves of the warehouse yet.

Unless you’re willing to pony up $950 for a 72-pound wheel of it, you can no longer find the wedges at Costco.

But, you can still sign up for Business Center delivery, if you’re willing to buy at least 10 pounds of it at a time.