Kirkland is a private label brand established by Costco when Costco recognized the desire to buy quality at an affordable price. The brand is made up of a few select companies that produce quality meat products at budget-friendly prices under the name of the Kirkland signature. If you are a lover of meat sold under the Kirkland brand and have been wondering where it comes from, what you want to know is Costco’s meat source.
Costco is a large, family-owned retailer that specializes in selling meat and poultry. Costco’s meat sources are some of the best in the business. The company has a wide variety of meats to choose from, including chicken, beef, pork, lamb, and turkey. Costco also offers a wide selection of seafood products, including lobster, crabmeat, and shrimp.
Kirkland, a store owned by Costco, is the primary supplier of meat to other stores under the Kirkland brand. The store imports meat from other countries, including poultry, pork, and veal - a type of meat from male calves. However, foreign suppliers also supply the store with its fish and seafood. ..
A Breakdown of Kirkland’s Meat Source
Kirkland Signature meats are sourced from U.S. and Australian meat suppliers. ..
The main supplier of the store’s beef is Californian farmers located in the San Joaquin Valley. ..
The organic beef on the menu at The Butcher’s is sourced from beef farms in California, with some of the organic stock imported from trusted foreign suppliers in Australia and Canada. This importation is due to the high demand for organic beef.
Costco’s chickens come from a Costco poultry farm in Fremont, Nebraska. The chicken products are self-produced in Costco’s chicken processing center located on the chicken farm.
The Costco chicken farm is the only provider of Costco’s chicken and its poultry products. The farm is estimated to cost over $450 million.
The company Swift is the primary supplier of Costco’s pork and its pork products. Other pork farmers like Tyson and Perdue farms also supply Costco with an assortment of pork and pork products.
Costco receives veal supply from Atlantic Veal and Lamb Inc., a company located in Brooklyn, New York. This supplier is the only one that Costco uses for veal, and it has been found to be reliable in the past. Over 120 farmers in the US provide veal to this company, which ensures that quality standards are met. ..
Kirkland lamb is sourced from trusted farms located in Australia. ..
Ways Kirkland Protects Its Meat Sources
Costco takes many steps to ensure the quality and traceability of meat sold under its Kirkland Signature. It certifies its beef suppliers according to recent USDA regulations on cattle care and processing of meat for commercial purposes. ..
- Freedom from pain, suffering, and death
- Freedom from being mutilated or injured
- Freedom from being kept in conditions that are harmful to them
- Freedom from being used in experiments without their consent
- Freedom from being subject to cruel or unusual punishment
The store ensures that all of its organic beef suppliers produce organic beef in compliance with the US National Organic Program rules and regulations.
Costco’s animal welfare policies are designed to ensure the well-being of its chickens and poultry.
Costco’s pork quality assurance program is designed to protect pigs while ensuring the production of quality pork meat from pig farms. The program includes the use of PQA Plus, a program that ensures pigs are fed with grasses free from growth hormones and animal drugs.
Costco ensures that all suppliers of its seafood products are in areas where the quality, freshness, and abundance supply of these foods is certain.
Conclusion
Costco has a long history of creating quality, affordable food. But it doesn’t stop there. The store also ensures that all its food items are traceable to reliable and trustworthy sources. This makes Costco one of the most trusted brands in the grocery industry.
Costco fish suppliers are in countries beyond the US, including Costa Rica, South America, and Latin America.
Costco is not the only company that manufactures Kirkland Signature products. ..
Some big brands that sell under the Kirkland label include; Diamond pet foods, Duracell batteries, Starbucks coffee, Kimberly-Clark diapers (Manufacturer of Huggies diapers), and Jelly Belly candy.
