Costco Shoppers Are Reporting Major Issues With the Store's Produce—Again
Diehard Costco fans know that there's a whole lot that the retailer does right. The warehouse club chain continuously generates major praise for its grocery deals, wide product selection, beloved bakery section, ultra-popular food court, and other membership perks.
But if there's one type of Costco product that frequently generates major complaints instead of praise, it's the fresh produce. Members have criticized the quality of the chain's fruits and veggies for years. In a September 2022 Reddit thread, for example, Costco customers shared that Russet potatoes–which WedMD says can last up to several months in a cool pantry–begin to rot within two weeks.
Members renewed their disdain for Costco's produce section in a new Reddit thread this week that has attracted more than 300 comments. Sharing a picture of rusty-brown Costco lettuce, a customer slammed the chain's fresh produce, saying that they either end up purchasing fruits and veggies that spoil quickly or are extremely unripe.
"Am I the only one who buys salads from Costco only to find brown lettuce and squishy tomatoes? I'm sick of this, bringing it back. I'm going to make my own salads from now on," the customer wrote.
As it turns out, this customer was far from alone in their experience. Many other shoppers agreed that Costco's fresh produce is either low quality, or at the very least, inconsistent.
One of these customers explained that they purchased a bag of avocados from Costco that never actually ripened, so they were stuck with "just a big bag of rock-hard avocados." The customer added, "Their produce is hit or miss."
Others reported finding mold on fresh broccoli florets and seeing packages of celery turn "mushy and watery" mere days after purchasing them.
"I only buy Costco produce if I plan on using it to cook a big meal, immediately," a shopper commented. "It's not much cheaper than a grocery store and it always seems to go bad quickly."
The reason for these reported produce-quality issues at Costco was not immediately apparent, but some fruits and vegetables do tend to spoil faster than others. The fact that the retailer sells groceries in bulk quantities doesn't necessarily help the problem either, since customers will have to finish even more food on a tight timetable before it inevitably goes bad.
Costco members who aren't ready to give up on the warehouse club's fresh produce just yet can follow several expert-recommended steps to keep their fruits and vegetables fresher for longer, including only choosing the freshest produce at the grocery store and storing it correctly at home.
Otherwise, they can follow in the footsteps of other members who say that buying Costco produce just isn't worth it.
"I stopped buying produce at Costco years ago," a customer commented.
Sign up for our newsletter!
