What Happens To Unsold Meat And Seafood At Costco?

Costco routinely sells beef, poultry, and various seafood items in bulk for great prices. But, as with all stores, not everything gets sold. So, what happens with all the chicken, steak, and fish fillets that get left behind on the shelf? Unlike most grocery stores that throw their unsold food away, Costco takes steps to salvage the meat and seafood that doesn't sell. As it turns out, the wholesale club has several ways of keeping unsold food out of landfills, including donations, repurposing, and turning it into animal feed.

Donation appears to be a big measure. Costco participates in Feeding America while also partnering with local food banks and shelters. There have been a lot of Reddit posts on the topic, with numerous past and present employees saying their local stores donate unsold food. Answering a question about what Costco does with unsold meat and fish, one Redditor said their store usually pulls it a day before its expiration for freezing, then donation. In another Reddit thread, multiple employees specifically stated that this included perishable items.

And it doesn't all go to people. On the same post, a Redditor said their partner's wildlife hospital and rehab center routinely received pallets of fish from Costco to feed the animals. Holidays can also dictate what Costco does with unsold meat. For example, multiple shoppers have reported spotting steeply discounted turkeys in their local stores the day after Thanksgiving.

Along with donation, a lot of Costco employees on Reddit have described their stores using excess meat and seafood for repurposing into food dishes that go straight into the deli section. So, if you spotted that must-have Costco salmon mango ceviche in the deli at your local store, it's possible it was made with extra seafood to avoid waste. Likewise, a Redditor claiming to work in a Costco deli section, stated that, "The leftover rotisserie chickens get harvested and used in some of the food such as chicken Alfredo or soup. The wings and ribs get repackaged and sold cold in the deli section."

These efforts are further backed up in Costco's 2025 Sustainability Report, which describes using creative ideas to repurpose or "upcycle" unsold perishable items, such as meat and seafood, into a variety of ready-to-go comfort foods Costco members can enjoy. The report also noted that the dishes made are based on customer interests in different locations, giving examples of ground beef from U.S. meat departments being made into stuffed peppers and meatloaf, while Canadian stores saw it turned into shepherd's pie. That's not to say some of the unsold meat and seafood doesn't get thrown away; if Costco still can't sell from the deli shelves, and food isn't fit for donation, perishables, such as meat and seafood, may then get thrown away.

The retailer's annual sustainability report also states that it has a goal of diverting all food waste by 80%. However, not all methods of food preservation are treated equally. The store uses Environmental Protection Agency guidelines that prioritize wasting as little as possible. For example, donation or "upcycling" (e.g., turning unsold rotisserie chickens into deli chicken noodle soup or pot pies) is Costco's top choice after trying to only buy what it actually needs for sales. After that, options including turning food into animal feed or composting. At the very bottom of the hierarchy is actual disposal of food, which the wholesale club makes clear it tries to avoid.

Still, the actual waste of unsold meat and seafood products all depends on the individual store. Despite reports from employees that their store follows corporate sustainability preferences, others say their locations tend to waste a lot of food. As one Redditor said, "My old warehouse tossed everything. It was so sad but it was also very poorly managed." It also depends on the circumstances. A Redditor that claims to be a Costco employee said that, at their store, an estimated $50 of perishable items gets tossed away each day. However, this was specifically in regards to food products that get picked up by shoppers and left in unsafe areas around the store.