What Does Costco Do With Its Unsold Food Items?

One of the most commonly asked questions about Costco isn't whether the food court hot dog price will be going up. CEO Ron Vachris confirmed that won't change under his tenure — while chomping one down, of course. But our immediate question actually covers items that aren't picked up by shoppers: What happens to the food Costco doesn't sell? The answer is both impressive in its scale and good for the soul.

We've previously looked at the retailer's unsold baked goods, which are donated to Feeding America. It may beggar belief, but not every rotisserie chicken flies off the shelves, and those not sold by closing time are used in new recipes. According to a social media commenter who claimed they worked in the Costco deli, some of the leftover rotisserie birds were used for chicken Alfredo or soup, while the wings and ribs were repackaged as cold cuts for the deli section.

While that's admirable, it's just a fraction of the food for sale at Costco. So where does the rest of it go? Well, it's not going home with staff members — the company expressly forbids employees from taking any leftovers when their shifts are done. It might sound mean-spirited, but the policy is specifically designed to limit waste. The less staff makes, the less is potentially thrown away. Instead, Costco's unsold food is typically donated to the Feeding America program — more than 140 million pounds of it to date, according to the retailer. But it's not the only place the store's unsold inventory ends up.

As well as working closely with Feeding America, to the north, Costco's 100-plus Canadian warehouses also make daily donations of unsold food, as well as lots of other products, to hundreds of local organizations supporting food banks. It doesn't end there, either. World Vision, a global relief organization, works to collect and distribute much of Costco's unsold inventory, including non-perishable food, across the United States. Although the lion's share of it stays in North America, roughly 10% is also shipped to needy communities around the world.

Bringing it back to the U.S., there's one more beneficiary of Costco's unsold food: cows. TikTok user and farmer silver_aoi363 posted a clip of two of her cows tucking into a huge pile of fruit from Costco. Across separate posts, she explained how the fruit bins are free of charge, the contents are frozen, and anyone interested should contact their local Costco to find out if they provide the same service. 

While we're on the subject of animals eating Costco's unsold food, there was speculation on social media that aforementioned unsold rotisserie chickens were sent away to make Kirkland Signature dog food. Commenters were skeptical, especially considering the amount of salt and seasoning used to make them so tasty. Costco's website says "most of the ingredients originate in the United States" but does not specify whether its rotisserie chicken is among them (though, given how the chicken is arguably better used in deli products, we'd guess the dog food doesn't utilize it).