Copyright The Street
Some things at Costco are just hard to resist. Freshly made bagels? Yes, please. Kerrygold Butter for a fraction of the cost at a regular grocery store? Check. And how about Costco’s signature rotisserie chicken, a perennial bestseller often praised for its affordability and convenience for the bargain price of $4.99? It’s hard to pass it up. Yet the chicken is drawing renewed scrutiny after a recent report highlighted persistent food-safety concerns. While the product remains widely enjoyed, shoppers may want to pay closer attention to handling and cooking precautions. The wholesale giant sells more than 100 million chickens each year at a $4.99 price point. Source: Seeking Alpha A nonprofit food-safety group, Farm Forward, found that Costco’s supplier, Lincoln Premium Poultry, repeatedly received the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s lowest safety rating — Category 3 — for elevated levels of salmonella contamination over multiple years. Source: Farm Forward According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), “about 1 in 25 packages of chicken at the grocery store are contaminated with salmonella.” Source: CDC What’s wrong with the Costco chicken A rotisserie chicken is typically pre-cooked and ready to eat; however, the report suggests that the source poultry may carry an elevated microbial risk even before it reaches shoppers. The USDA standard allows for a certain percentage of positive salmonella samples in processing plants; a USDA Category 3 rating signals that a plant exceeds those thresholds, raising questions about baseline safety performance. While reduced to a percentage statistic, the implications are meaningful: Contamination before cooking may increase the risk of illness if reheating, improper storage, or cross-contamination occurs. In other words, even “ready-to-eat” items demand careful handling. The report notes that although no official recall has been announced in connection with the current findings, the last major recall tied to Costco’s rotisserie chicken dates back more than a decade. Costco chickens have been flagged as dangerous in the past Costco has previously faced food-safety issues tied to its chicken products. In 2013, approximately 39,755 pounds of rotisserie chicken from a Costco store in San Francisco were recalled due to possible Salmonella Heidelberg contamination. Later, in 2016, the USDA issued a health alert over rotisserie chicken salad sold at a Costco store in Washington, tied to illnesses with the strain salmonella , as reported in Supermarket News. These precedents underscore that while today’s issue is based on plant ratings rather than a fresh outbreak, the stakes remain real. What Costco says about its chicken problem Lincoln Premium Poultry, Costco’s rotisserie-chicken supplier, responded via email to the Los Angeles Times, stating: “Lincoln Premium Poultry treats the safety of its products as an utmost concern” and added that it is “working to improve its processes.” Costco itself has not issued an official response. Given the findings, food-safety experts emphasize the following: Always ensure that a rotisserie chicken has been reheated or maintained at a safe temperature if you’re repurposing leftovers. Never rely solely on packaging temperature instructions — use a food thermometer to check that internal temperature reaches 165 °F (74 °C). Avoid leaving cooked poultry at room temperature; promptly refrigerate and prevent cross-contamination with raw ingredients. The CDC and USDA reiterate that proper handling dramatically reduces the chances of illness. Source: Food Safety and Inspection Service For Costco, the rotisserie chicken is a branding staple and a driver of foot traffic. Its low price has made it one of Costco’s many loss leaders (similar to the $1.50 hot dog deal), bringing people into the store. Any question about its safety touches both consumer trust and the company’s broader reputation. With tens of millions of birds sold annually, even a slight increase in illness risk can cause significant concern. The recent Farm Forward report does not allege a currently known outbreak linked to Costco’s rotisserie chicken. Nonetheless, it flags systemic processing issues within the supplier, raising a potential contamination risk. For consumers, that means this “heat-and-eat” convenience item warrants the same cautious handling as raw poultry. If you pick up one of Costco’s rotisserie chickens this week, don’t skip the thermometer, store it quickly, and reheat or consume it promptly. The chicken is likely fine, but it’s worth taking extra steps to make sure.
