The Biggest Food Recalls To Ever Hit Costco

Costco is known for many things, like quality liquor, cheap food court options, all the bulk items you could ever want, and endless samples. However, it also has a history of some pretty nasty food recalls — and that's never fun. Not only do they come with certain health scares for consumers, but they cost farmers, companies, and distributors exorbitant amounts of money.

Obviously, consumer health and safety are paramount, but it can be hard to move past such significant food blunders when it comes to the companies involved. Unfortunately, Costco has experienced quite a few food recalls — but we won't hold that against them, right? After all, Costco is known for doing the right thing and it has even put out a notice about their chocolate crepes simply because the color was off. So, you can rest assured, they've got you covered regarding health, safety, and quality overall.

Keep reading to learn about a few of the biggest food recalls in Costco's history. While many of them are somewhat recent, you may be surprised to learn the true extent of their impact.

On November 27, 2024, Costco was rocked by a massive egg recall due to health and safety concerns. Sold under the Kirkland Signature brand name, Handsome Brook Farms had to recall 10,800 packages of Kirkland Signature Organic Pasture Raised 24-Count Eggs. They did it voluntarily, but really they didn't have a choice. Why? The eggs in question could potentially be contaminated with salmonella, and the list of adverse side effects paired with the organism is not only lengthy but pretty serious. Infections caused by salmonella could even lead to death in people with compromised immune systems.

Starting November 22, 2024, these eggs were distributed to 25 Costco locations across five states. How did this happen? Well, according to the company's recall announcement, the process "was initiated after the company determined that eggs not intended for retail distribution were instead packaged and distributed in retail packaging." Seems like a pretty costly oversight, but thankfully they worked to remedy the issue with the FDA and executed additional supply chain controls. They also retrained personnel to prevent something like this from happening again. Anyone who happened to get a batch of the potentially contaminated eggs was instructed to either throw them away or bring them back to Costco to receive a full refund.

Frozen chicken patties are super convenient to keep around — that is, of course, if they haven't been recalled. Unfortunately, that's exactly what happened to Foster Farms' Frozen Chicken Patties sold at Costco in late 2022. About 148,000 pounds of the product were recalled and it was deemed a Class 1 infraction, so it's more than fair to say it was high risk. The reason for this severe of a recall? According to an announcement published by the Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) on October 29, 2022, they "may be contaminated with extraneous materials, specifically hard clear pieces of plastic."

Consumer complaints of embedded plastic triggered this recall, but before it went into effect the product was known to be sent to five states. While the FSIS noted that no injuries were confirmed regarding the product, they also said the plastic pieces could be sharp enough to cause harm. Consumers who purchased the product were instructed to return them or throw them away, and since only 71,800 pounds out of the almost 150,000 recalled were recovered, hopefully, that's what happened to the rest of them.

There may be a slew of myths and facts about food allergies circling around, but no matter how you cut it, they are no joke. Any food producer worth a darn knows that undisclosed ingredients in a product could seriously affect people with food allergies, so it's a big infraction. That's why it's no surprise Ellenos Real Greek issued a recall for its Vanilla Bean Greek Yogurt in April of 2023. Sold in 12 packs of 4 ounce cups, the Ellenos Greek yogurt in question was recalled because it may have contained egg, which was not declared on the label. As a result, the product was taken off the market to prevent serious illness in anyone with an egg allergy. Before the recall, it was sold in three states: Washington, Oregon, and Alaska.

Interestingly, this blunder was discovered when the yogurt cups were found to be bright yellow instead of white with small flakes, as is customary with the company's vanilla bean product. An Ellenos company announcement stated, "After a full internal investigation, it was determined that Vanilla Bean yogurt cups were inadvertently used and packed with Lemon Curd yogurt product." Unfortunately for them, their Lemon Curd yogurt contains egg and since the vanilla bean doesn't, it wasn't listed on the label. Whoops! Luckily, no illnesses or deaths resulted from this potentially harmful oversight.

By far one of the most detrimental recalls in Costco history occurred in 1998. In June of that year, 172,000 pounds of Kirkland Signature frozen ground beef was recalled due to E. coli concerns. The contaminated ground beef was traced back to the company's central processing facility in California, but it was quickly distributed and 24 states in total were affected.

Not only did this recall affect such a wide scope, but it also led to serious illness in at least one person, so maybe saying it was an "E. coli concern" was underplaying the severity a bit. A woman in New York was seriously ill after consuming the product in question, but interestingly enough, seven other people who ate the same burgers were okay. The U.S. Department of Agriculture speculated that the woman who got sick may not have washed her hands after handling the raw product. While that is always a big no-no, that's no excuse for the presence of E. coli.

Apparently, Costco conducted its own tests on the meat and also had it evaluated by independent laboratories to determine risk. Both facilities reported that no contamination was detected, but the risk was too high not to recall the ground beef regardless.

There are lots of blueberry cooking mistakes, but an undeclared allergen in the recipe is quite possibly the most severe, especially if you are distributing and selling them across the nation. Regrettably, this exact issue led to 31,824 pounds of Torn Ranch's Organic Dark Chocolate Covered Blueberries being recalled in May of 2021. While delicious, the 18 ounce bags of blueberries potentially contained almonds. Since the ingredient was not listed on the label, it put people with a severe tree nut allergy directly in harm's way. If you've ever known someone with a nut allergy or happen to have one yourself, you know just how dangerous exposure can be.

It should be noted that Torn Ranch initiated this recall voluntarily out of an abundance of caution, so there's a small chance the blueberries were fine. Even so, the recalled lot was distributed to Washington, Oregon, Alaska, and Idaho, making the potential for fallout high — hence the swift precautionary measures. As per usual, consumers who purchased the potentially problematic chocolate blueberries were instructed to return them for a refund or simply toss them out to prevent any unfortunate accidents.

Considering shelled walnuts are great in stir-fry recipes, tasty pasta dishes, salads, and so much more, why not buy them in bulk? That's probably what people who picked up a 3-pound bag of Kirkland Signature Shelled Walnuts thought in September and October of 2022 (or at least something similar). However, they would be sad to learn their giant bags of walnuts were being recalled. Actually, if they didn't hear about the recall first, they probably knew something was off the moment they opened the bag.

On September 27, 2022, Mid Valley Nut Company (the grower and processor for Costco's shelled walnuts) declared the product was being recalled. This action was not triggered by a health concern. Instead, the company notice said it was "due to the stale taste and rancid smell." While this is a huge issue regarding quality and the company's reputation, it isn't as bad as a listeria outbreak or something like an undeclared allergen. Even so, what an inconvenience. The company did apologize in the letter and advised people to return them for a refund. They also said consumers should "rest assured that your next purchase of Kirkland Signature Shelled Walnuts will be an excellent experience." Since you still find the product on Costco's shelves today, I'm guessing they managed to keep their promise.

Nothing beats a can of cold brew coffee when you need a caffeine fix on the go. However, if you had any Kirkland Signature Colombian Cold Brew Coffee in your fridge or pantry on February 17, 2023, you may have felt somewhat differently. Berner Food & Beverage, the company responsible for producing Costco brand canned cold brew, and the FDA issued a recall notice for it that day. The reason cited was the presence of foreign material, and this time it wasn't plastic. It was metal. More specifically, they said there was potential for cans to have a metal bolt inside. Um, strange to say the least.

A total of 231,071 cases or 2,772,852 cans were affected by this recall and they were distributed to stores in 13 states. So needless to say, it was far-reaching and compared to other recalls, pretty substantial. Even so, the company believed the risk potential was slim. But don't you think you would hear a bolt rattling around inside a canned beverage? Regardless, they took all the steps needed to ensure consumer safety — because no one wants to drink cold brew coffee (or any other canned beverage) that might have metal inside the can.

On March 16, 2023, California Splendor, Inc. recalled select lots of 4-pound Kirkland Signature Frozen Organic Strawberries due to a hepatitis A scare. The affected strawberries were sold in San Diego, Los Angeles, and Hawaii –at least that's what they thought at first. After further investigation, the hepatitis A outbreak was linked to strawberries imported from Baja California, Mexico. In addition to California Splendor, the outbreak affected several other brands and retailers, including Walmart and H-E-B. All in all, this was a massive recall that touched countless people. Even if they weren't all Costco shoppers, the fallout was big enough to make it one of the largest recalls in recent history.

A California Splendor company announcement said Hepatitis A had not been detected on their products. However, "out of an abundance of caution, consumers should stop consuming the food and return it to their local Costco store for a refund." Considering 10 associated cases of hepatitis A were confirmed by July 18, 2023, an abundance of caution was more than warranted. Thankfully, this recall has now been completed, so feel free to enjoy frozen Kirkland Signature Organic Strawberries without concern.

When you first hear about Costco's Rotisserie Chicken Salad being recalled, you might think it has something to do with chicken. However, in 2015, that wasn't the case. In fact, it was the celery and onion blend used in the chicken salad that was giving people a reason for concern. On November 26, 2015, the producer of the veggie blend, Taylor Farms, issued a recall for its diced mix of celery and onions due to potential E. coli contamination.

Unfortunately, this recall spread much further than just Costco and in the end, 19 people across 7 states became ill as a result of consuming the diced celery and onion blend. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, five of the 19 people who fell ill found themselves in the hospital "and two developed hemolytic uremic syndrome, a type of kidney failure." Fortunately, no deaths occurred, but still, how scary. All things considered, this could be the most detrimental Costco recall to date. However, it isn't so straightforward how many people became ill due to products purchased specifically from Costco since so many other brands were pulled into the unfortunate situation.

Customers love Kirkland Signature American Vodka. Even if the rumors about Grey Goose making the spirit have been dispelled, there's no denying it is a great product through and through. However, people who purchased the product between June 12, 2023, and August 10, 2023, were in for an unsuspecting surprise. Instead of opening a bottle of the spirit they know and love, they were overwhelmed with an unpleasant smell and taste.

After some pretty horrible feedback and an investigation, Costco eventually recalled several lots of its American Vodka. The product information notice (found on Reddit) stated, "It has come to our attention that the taste profile of units marked with certain lot codes may not have met the expected profile normally consistent with this product." They went on to say that it was not a food safety issue, but due to it not meeting quality expectations, a recall was initiated. While Costco's explanation was somewhat vague, a commenter on Reddit who claimed to work at the company's regional office said, "Apparently it has hints of rum due to a container not being completely cleaned before it was used for vodka during transport." So, the vodka tasted and smelled off, but really it was still straight booze, just with a touch of rum mixed in. Speculations on Reddit also indicated that even if you already drank the foul-smelling vodka, there was a chance they'd accept the empty bottle for a refund.

Faribault Foods, Inc., a supplier for Costco, issued a massive recall for several types of beans on April 22, 2021. The beans involved were sent to 11 states and included three varieties: S&W Organic Black Beans, O Organic Black Beans, and O Organic Chili Beans. That seems like quite a lot of products and states affected, but when you hear why, you'll not only understand but be super grateful they did the right thing.

The recall was initiated after Faribault Foods Inc. received numerous consumer complaints about the hermetic seal on cans being faulty. While this sounds gross enough (just imagine what kinds of stuff could sneak into a can before it reaches your pantry), the repercussions could indeed be very serious. As it turns out, compromised hermetic seals could result in cans bloating, leaking, or worst of all, allowing harmful bacteria that lead to botulism poisoning to grow inside.

If you don't already know how scary botulism is, the Food and Drug Administration reported that the symptoms include blurred or double vision, slurred speech, drooping eyelids, difficulty swallowing and breathing, and more. Plus, if botulism poisoning goes untreated, they said it can lead to paralysis of certain muscles and even sudden death. No wonder Faribault Farms wasn't taking any chances. After all, there are several things to consider before adding canned beans to dishes – but botulism shouldn't be one of them.

You may be able to order from a taco truck like a pro, but when you don't feel like going out you'll be glad to know you can also get tasty frozen street tacos. Sounds interesting, right? Well one company, Pescanova, sure thinks so. It makes a Shrimp Street Taco with Roasted Corn, Poblano & Chipotle Sauce product that comes frozen in large bags, and you guessed it, they sell it at Costco — or at least they used to (they aren't listed on the company's website anymore). Bags of Pescanova Shrimp Street Tacos purchased between March 23, 2023 and April 24, 2023, were recalled due to a horrible mistake.

According to a notice put out by Pescanova, they had to withdraw their Shrimp Street Tacos "due to the potential presence of foreign material in the product." The foreign material in question? Pieces of plastic that measured up to 5 millimeters in size. Yikes! Street tacos are good and all — and frozen ones are super convenient — but obviously, they aren't worth accidentally ingesting large chunks of plastic. The notice said that consumers shouldn't eat the product, and instructed people to return it to Costco for a full refund. Thankfully, no hospitalizations or serious public health scares became of this recall, so in the grand scheme of things, not so bad at all.