What Happens To The Leftover Food In Costco's Bakery?

If you've ever been to Costco, then you know the wholesale club has a wide array of baked goods available at any given time. Cookies, cakes, and fresh breads are always on shelves, but if shoppers can't find creative ways to use those bakery items, then they might not all sell. What happens if they don't? Ultimately, any leftover bakery food items are usually donated to local or national charities like food pantries. Baked goods are often donated within just a couple of days of their sell-by date, so they're removed from store shelves with enough time to be transported to local food banks without going bad.

Some of Costco's pastries are better than others, but regardless of how shoppers think they taste, everything is fair game for donation as long as it's still fresh. Costco is one of Feeding America's regular donors, and while the grocery giant doesn't state exactly how much it donates, the company donates both money and food, with foods including dairy products, produce, and bread. Feeding America connects with local food pantries, which helps get leftover food to families in need for no cost. While U.S. Costco locations mainly donate to Feeding America, warehouses outside the United States donate food to other global charities.

Baked goods are usually inspected before they're stocked

When baked goods arrive at pantries and food banks, they're often cold; sometimes, the baked goods are kept refrigerated once they're pulled from store shelves, which helps them maintain their freshness. Once they arrive at the food bank warehouse or a local food pantry, they're inspected by volunteers to ensure they're visually safe to eat and that the sell-by dates haven't passed. While food pantries sometimes accept outdated nonperishables that don't actually go bad, most baked goods and breads are pulled from shelves if they're too old, and especially if they show any signs of having gone bad. Once the shelves are stocked, people can come and pick up the items as needed.

While Costco's decision to donate food is charitable, there's a big benefit for the retailer: tax breaks. Ultimately, writing off those donations improves Costco's bottom line, resulting in greater profits than if the chain had only discarded the food. Still, it benefits those in need, so everybody wins.

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