What Does Costco Do With All Its Unsold Bakery Items?

Despite millions of people in the United States facing hunger and experiencing food insecurity, restaurants and grocery stores are often left with large amounts of unsold goods. While this isn't a problem for things like canned goods that can stay stocked for longer, perishable goods like bakery items rotate on and off shelves much more quickly. And, at superstores like Costco with large in-house bakeries, this leaves the potential for massive quantities of food waste. 

Have you ever wondered what grocery stores do with expired food? Thankfully, Costco's commitment to communities has a built-in plan for minimizing the waste of perishables like baked goods so they can be redistributed instead of trashed. On its website, Costco outlines how it regularly donates to Feeding America — a non-profit that works with food banks across the states to end hunger — by giving both money and food. Costco also regularly donates and takes leftover groceries to other local food pantries, with former employees on Reddit confirming carts would be stacked every Sunday full of goods to be donated. 

It's important to note that while a baked good may be marked down in-store, it doesn't necessarily mean it's gone bad or become moldy. In fact, many restaurants, like Jimmy Johns, and local bakeries will sell day-old bread at a discounted rate because it's still good to eat, just not technically fresh. All this to say, food pantries aren't receiving rotten food, but get a large supply of donations thanks to Costco's initiatives.

Of course, baked goods aren't the only thing that expires at the end of the day or week — but Costco's plan takes care of this. An additional part of their community commitment includes donating protein, dairy products, and produce to food banks. According to food bank volunteers, Costco's donations from places like their deli department play a key role in keeping pantries fully stocked. This consistency is something local food banks rely on and praise Costco for, unlike companies like Panera, whose bread often winds up in the trash despite their Day-End Dough-Nation program. Costco gives back to other programs and organizations as well, all in an effort to lower food waste.

Another thing Costco does with all its unsold produce is help continue the cycle of life by donating it to farms. Local farmers then use the produce to feed livestock and continue operations — yet another form of giving back to the store's surrounding communities. 

With so many store locations, Costco is able to reach a variety of people in different financial and food stability situations to put their expired and day-old groceries to good use. Note that Costco has also expanded its community commitment to include its stores outside of the U.S., and those locations donate primarily to World Vision. So, both locally and abroad, Costco continues to support its communities both in and out of the store.