What Really Happens to Unsold Meat and Seafood at Costco?

Costco is known for its bulk packages of beef, chicken, seafood, and other grocery essentials. However, even with thousands of shoppers visiting its warehouses, some fresh products inevitably remain unsold. So what happens to the steaks, chicken breasts, and seafood packages customers leave behind?

The answer involves much more than simply tossing unwanted groceries into the trash. Costco has developed programs to reduce waste through food donations, prepared meals, animal feeding programs, and recycling. According to the company’s 2025 Sustainability Report, these efforts are part of a broader strategy to keep usable products out of landfills.

Costco Donates Unsold Food to Help Families in Need

One of Costco’s main ways to reduce food waste is donating suitable products to organizations that help families experiencing food insecurity. The warehouse retailer works with Feeding America, The Global FoodBanking Network, and local food banks to distribute surplus groceries. These partnerships help keep edible food in circulation instead of sending it directly to disposal facilities.

Costco’s donation program is significant in scale. According to its 2025 Sustainability Report, the company donated approximately 223.4 million pounds of food globally during fiscal 2025. These donations included several food categories, although the company does not publicly identify how much of the donated food was specifically unsold meat and seafood.

Costco says its food donation programs operate across every U.S. state and most countries or regions where it does business. The company also reports working to expand the types of products its facilities can safely donate. This approach helps community organizations receive groceries that might otherwise go unused.

Some Unsold Products Become Prepared Deli Meals

Costco’s deli department plays an important role in its efforts to prevent food waste. Rather than letting every unsold product go unused, the retailer sometimes transforms suitable ingredients into ready-to-eat dishes. This process allows the company to create additional products for customers while reducing unnecessary waste.

One notable example involves Costco’s popular rotisserie chickens. According to the company’s sustainability disclosures, unsold rotisserie chickens can become ingredients in chicken noodle soup, pot pies, enchiladas, and fajita quesadillas. These meals provide another opportunity to use quality food that remains suitable for preparation.

Ground beef also receives similar treatment in certain Costco locations. In the United States, the company reports using ground beef from the meat department to prepare stuffed peppers and meatloaf. Canadian locations have also used ground beef for shepherd’s pie and stuffed bell peppers.

However, Costco does not indicate that it turns every unsold meat or seafood item into a deli meal. Its sustainability report explains that prepared food offerings can vary by warehouse and customer preferences. The company also does not provide a specific example of seafood being repurposed into a deli dish in its published report.

Animals May Benefit From Costco’s Food Recovery Programs

Not every unsold food product can be redirected toward human consumption. In some cases, organic materials may be suitable for animal feeding programs. Costco includes these programs among its documented methods for preventing food waste.

According to Costco’s official waste-reduction information, the retailer works with programs that serve animal sanctuaries, rescue centers, zoos, and local farms. These organizations can receive eligible organic materials for the animals they care for. The company identifies cattle, hogs, and other animals as beneficiaries of these arrangements.

This provides another potential destination for food materials that cannot be sold or donated for human consumption. However, Costco does not specify which meat and seafood products individual facilities send to animal feeding programs. The availability of these arrangements can also depend on the programs serving a particular warehouse.

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Food Waste Can Become Compost, Fuel, or Electricity

Costco’s waste reduction efforts extend beyond donations and animal feeding programs. Some organic materials can be processed into useful products through recycling and recovery methods. These alternatives provide additional options when food cannot be consumed by people or animals.

The retailer identifies composting and anaerobic digestion as ways to manage certain organic waste materials. Composting breaks down organic matter into material that can improve soil, while anaerobic digestion can produce biogas. Costco also reports recycling some organic materials into fertilizer, biofuels, and electricity.

One example involves grease generated through Costco’s rotisserie chicken operations. The company’s sustainability report describes converting chicken grease into biofuel as part of its recovery efforts. This demonstrates how even materials associated with food preparation can have uses beyond their original purpose.

Costco Has Already Exceeded Its Waste Diversion Goal

Costco has set a companywide goal to divert 80% of its waste from landfills. Importantly, this target covers multiple waste categories, including food, packaging, recyclable materials, and other products. It should not be interpreted as a claim that Costco saves 80% of its unsold meat and seafood.

The company’s reported results show progress toward that broader target. During fiscal 2025, Costco diverted 82.8% of its waste from landfills, exceeding its stated goal. Its sustainability disclosures also report approximately 1.7 million U.S. tons of diverted waste during that period.

These figures highlight the scale of Costco’s waste management operations. However, the company does not publish a separate diversion percentage specifically for unsold chicken, beef, fish, or shellfish in its main sustainability report. As a result, the exact proportion of those products that ultimately gets discarded remains unclear.

Does Costco Ever Throw Away Unsold Meat and Seafood?

Despite its extensive recovery programs, Costco does not claim to eliminate food waste. Some products may no longer be suitable for sale, preparation, donation, or other recovery methods. In those circumstances, disposal remains a possible outcome.

Costco says it follows the Environmental Protection Agency’s Wasted Food Scale when determining how to manage food waste. This framework prioritizes preventing waste and feeding people over lower-priority options, including disposal. It also recognizes that different recovery methods serve different purposes.

Ultimately, unsold meat and seafood do not automatically end up in Costco’s dumpsters. The company’s documented programs provide several ways to recover useful products and materials before considering disposal. Exactly what happens to an individual package depends on its condition, available recovery options, and the warehouse handling it.

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