Expired food at Costco?!?!

[molala]

I was at Costco today and randomly grabbed a bottle of parmasen on the shelves and was shocked to see it's expiring tomorrow (Sept 19) and it wasn't only that one bottle but a lot of them are. Then I went over to the sauce isle (really random cos I don't need any sauce) and grabbed a jar of Miracle Whip and it was expired a month ago. I grabbed few more which all expired and one of them were expired JAN 2007 :eek: I told a clerk on my way out and she was shocked as well. I always love going to Costco and I really didn't expect this to happen. I don't know it's that particular Costco (Markham East) or what.

I always want to buy their English muffin but they usually expired in a week or so. I know I can keep it in the freezer but I prefer something fresher.

I read expiry dates on label religiously whenever I buy food. I do know for a fact that many people don't. What if a restaurant owner bought some expired sauce without knowing it and cause food poisoning to the customer? The chance of this is probably slim but thinking about it just kinda freak me out.

Is it only that particular Costco or it is quite common among Costco?

Lastly, I know this have been brought up many times, but everyone.....remember to check the expiry date on the label before proceeding to the check out!

[earthman]

At Mississauga South location, they often sell moldy strawberries (overstocked).

[litebrite]

Meh, the best before date is only really pertinent on items that are perishable like eggs, milk, bread, meat, etc.

Grocery items like miracle whip isnt likely to go bad by the time the date stamped on the bottom passes by.

[molala]

Meh, the best before date is only really pertinent on items that are perishable like eggs, milk, bread, meat, etc.

Grocery items like miracle whip isnt likely to go bad by the time the date stamped on the bottom passes by.

yea it doesn't...we found a jar of miracle whip that's expiring in a day...we opened it and it was good for a week..then it's rotting a week later....maybe cos it's opened...however...i would not pay for any food that's expired!

[deep]

You can always tell when the dairy products are close to expiry at the Oakville Costco because they go on sale. I was excited to see Phill Cream Cheese on sale until I realised I had 4 days to eat two big tubs of it....

[LuLu2]

I always check the expiry dates when I buy food as well.

[tsatsa]

That really sucks, I always thought Costco are really good with things like that.:mad:

[Cheap Cat]

Wow. Never had this problem at Costco. Stuff doesn't usually stay around long enough to go bad or get close to the expiry date. Are these locations slow or do staff just don't rotate stock? Now, I did have this problem at Sam's which is why I am no longer a member.

[Rehan]

FWIW, I've never seen expired stuff at Costco.

I've seen it several times in the organic dairy section of Loblaws/Superstore, though. :(

I told a clerk on my way out and she was shocked as well. That's one sign that it's not a normal thing at Costco.

[1226]

That's one sign that it's not a normal thing at Costco.

+1

That's a good way to tell if it's commonplace. If the employee you tell isn't fazed then well, it's not the greatest store. If you tell someone and the product is still there the next time you go, then you're at Superstore.:razz:

[blizzah]

Tell a employee about it, and don't buy it I guess.

Nothing you can really do about it. I think it may have been they just left the crate there for a long time and no one ever buys that item.

[Hugh Jass]

You can always tell when the dairy products are close to expiry at the Oakville Costco because they go on sale. ....

No such thing as Oakville Costco.

[deep]

No such thing as Oakville Costco.
Sorry, the Mississauga South location...I always think of it as Oakville because it's across Winston Churchill.

http://www.costco.ca/Warehouse/LocationTemplate.aspx?Warehouse=531&lang=en-CA

That one.

[molala]

Wow. Never had this problem at Costco. Stuff doesn't usually stay around long enough to go bad or get close to the expiry date. Are these locations slow or do staff just don't rotate stock? Now, I did have this problem at Sam's which is why I am no longer a member.

I think it's both. I don't usually see long line up at this Costco. I think unless you own a restaurant or something, it's difficult to finish a bag of english muffin in a week. as for the staff part, I guess they have pretty high turn over in staff because I always see a wanted ad posted at the door of the store...it must be because of poor management! :|

[ephemera]

The worst place I noticed with moldy or rotting food was Bruno's. Its more high end and their stuff usually costs more but just a cursory glance you can see mold on fruits and veggies and even their frozen produce section, containers are bursting their lids or they are covered in solid ice! This is at one location though.

[bobcat99]

I think it's both. I don't usually see long line up at this Costco. I think unless you own a restaurant or something, it's difficult to finish a bag of english muffin in a week. as for the staff part, I guess they have pretty high turn over in staff because I always see a wanted ad posted at the door of the store...it must be because of poor management! :|

I thought we couldn't finish the English muffins in a week, we still bought them ate half and froze the rest. Surprisingly they still taste good after freezing.

[Bookpreviews]

+1

That's a good way to tell if it's commonplace. If the employee you tell isn't fazed then well, it's not the greatest store. If you tell someone and the product is still there the next time you go, then you're at Superstore.:razz:

I don't think any stores are very good.
Shoppers near me seeling expired sunscreen and expired beef jerky.
Loblaws emvale location leaves the yves veggie meats out up to 3 months after expiry- I complained about it and nothing was done.

I've even seen tubes of cookie dough at AP woth the dates scraped off...done qite badly as there was black bits on all that one flavour.

Oh and grrrr! last week was at Shoppers wanted some Cool Whip, was tired and did not cheque the date. Get home containes is like a block if ice and also "rubbery".
Checked the date it was Sept 2007
Shoppers did not offer me anything "extra" not even 1,000 points

I called Kraft and they were helpful- sent me 2 free coupons :) and i didn't even ask for them!

[GunnerX]

I've seen expired items at Costco. Both at the new Elgin/Leslie and Hwy7/Woodbine locations. The Elgin/Leslie Costco sells the Milk with Pro-Biotics and we've been buying it for my daughter. However, several times I have checked the expiry I have seen some that were already expired and some expiring within a couple of days. Once I bought some bread at Costco at Hwy 7 and checked 2 bags and they had a good expiry date. I grabbed more bags with the same colour tags as that usually means they expire at the same time. However, it turned out that 1 bag had already expired a few days back and it was already mouldy when I opened it. Good thing I was able to return it. But after that, I make sure to check every single expiry date on everything I buy.

[molala]

I've seen expired items at Costco. Both at the new Elgin/Leslie and Hwy7/Woodbine locations. The Elgin/Leslie Costco sells the Milk with Pro-Biotics and we've been buying it for my daughter. However, several times I have checked the expiry I have seen some that were already expired and some expiring within a couple of days. Once I bought some bread at Costco at Hwy 7 and checked 2 bags and they had a good expiry date. I grabbed more bags with the same colour tags as that usually means they expire at the same time. However, it turned out that 1 bag had already expired a few days back and it was already mouldy when I opened it. Good thing I was able to return it. But after that, I make sure to check every single expiry date on everything I buy.

the good thing about costco is they let you return everything..but still...it's a hassle!!

[googoo]

I've seen it several times in the organic dairy section of Loblaws/Superstore, though.

That's understandable because organic tends to have a much shorter shelf time because of the way it was grown.

Add that to the warehousing and shipping times and the shelf time can be way shorter.

Brent

[Dustbunny]

I always check expiry dates and can't say Costco here is an issue usually. One dept I do have an issue with is the bakery as they have a schedule for things (like muffins are only make Monday and Wednesday, pies another day, etc. and so on) so you can buy 3 day old goods, full price, which to me isn't quite right. In the deli area there I've gotten some real deals on things which were closer to expiry so I consider that fair game and they are very quick to mark down the seasonal foods.

Meanwhile most grocery stores seem to have the same problem. I challenged one of them for having a flyer sale and the stuff was all out of date. They went to the back and got me some new stock. IMO either they shouldn't be selling the stuff or they should be warning people if it's a sale due to dates.

Nothing turns me off a store faster than finding a lot of old stock.