What's Going On with Costco's Rotisserie Chickens?

[MULTIZ321]

What's Going On with Costco's Rotisserie Chickens?

What's Going On with Costco's Rotisserie Chickens?

The wholesale giant is beloved for its tender, flavorful birds, but customers are saying something is off.

www.allrecipes.com

Richard

 

[moonstone]

We haven't had one in a few months but our DD said the Costco rotisserie chickens at home (Orillia ON) are now in bags instead of the traditional plastic container.
She was worried about the juices leaking in her car so she placed that bag in another plastic bag, but it didn't leak. She didn't mention any change in the taste.

~Diane

 

[mentalbreak]

We don’t purchase these often, maybe 3x/year, but did notice a significant taste quality difference when we had one a few weeks ago. To the point that everybody just ate the sides for that meal and we didn’t bother deboning the rest for leftovers.

We used to pick up the chicken alfredo penne from Costco every month, then less frequently when they switched from breast strips to shredded rotisserie chicken. And in the last few times, the flavor of the dish has also changed quite significantly. Even our teenager that has loved it since age 3 agreed with not buying it again.

 

[pedro47]

We purchased one this morning it was still in their traditional plastics container. This was in the Newport News, VA store.

 

[stmartinfan]

We bought a chicken about two weeks ago and get them at least monthly. I haven't noticed any off flavor and ours continues to come in the hard plattic packaging.

 

[dlpearson]

We had two over the course of the last two weeks. Tasted the same to me (and they came in the typical containers). Orem, UT

 

[Passepartout]

I just got one last weekend. Packed- as usual- in the plastic covered tray. It tastes just fine, though my cardiologist wishes there was a less salt one available.

And again, the bird's wing was broken. I asked this question the last time a Costco chix thread posted- and it wasn't followed up. EVERY Costco rotisserie chicken has at least one of it's wing bones broken. I hope it is in the processing/packaging, and not while the poor bird is living it's short and miserable life being force fed in a cage.

Jim

 

[pedro47]

deleted

 

[pedro47]

We had two over the course of the last two weeks. Tasted the same to me (and they came in the typical containers). Orem, UT

I just fixed me a chicken sandwich this afternoon; and it tasted the same to me.

 

[Sandy VDH]

Note the plastic bags, are in Canada only AFAIAA.

 

[jabberwocky]

Note the plastic bags, are in Canada only AFAIAA.

This would make sense given the ban on certain types of single use plastics in Canada. I wonder if the bags actually are plastic or whether they are some sort of compostable substitute?

 

[Sandy VDH]

This would make sense given the ban on certain types of single use plastics in Canada. I wonder if the bags actually are plastic or whether they are some sort of compostable substitute?

Plastic Like pages perhaps, I don't know their composition.

 

[easyrider]

I haven't noticed anything different regarding taste of the Costco Chicken in the Palm Springs of Washington. I did notice everyone, including us, decided to go to Costco on the same day at the same time. Being that I'm not really into crowds, I usually would have left, but we were out of frozen fudge bars, so I bought a chicken while we were there.

Bill

 

[Superchief]

We don’t purchase these often, maybe 3x/year, but did notice a significant taste quality difference when we had one a few weeks ago. To the point that everybody just ate the sides for that meal and we didn’t bother deboning the rest for leftovers.

We used to pick up the chicken alfredo penne from Costco every month, then less frequently when they switched from breast strips to shredded rotisserie chicken. And in the last few times, the flavor of the dish has also changed quite significantly. Even our teenager that has loved it since age 3 agreed with not buying it again.

We noticed a slight change the last time we purchased it. We attributed it to a change in stores. The location we previously shopped closed and was replaced by a new larger store that is an additional 15 mile drive. In the past, we really enjoyed the chicken salad that was made from the rotisserie chicken. However, there was a major change about a year ago and it was more rubbery and had less flavor. I'd rather pay a little more than have the quality diminish. Costco has also made a major push on organic and non-GMO and we don't like paying a premium for something that adds no value. I worked in agriculture so I don't fall for the 'adjective' marketing ploys to increase cost.

 

[ScoopKona]

I just got one last weekend. Packed- as usual- in the plastic covered tray. It tastes just fine, though my cardiologist wishes there was a less salt one available.

And again, the bird's wing was broken. I asked this question the last time a Costco chix thread posted- and it wasn't followed up. EVERY Costco rotisserie chicken has at least one of it's wing bones broken. I hope it is in the processing/packaging, and not while the poor bird is living it's short and miserable life being force fed in a cage.

Jim

I didn't answer because I don't have an answer. There are three possibilities:

1) The chickens are horribly abused in the big industrial ranching operations that provide millions of chickens to Costco.
2) The chickens, once killed, are roughly and haphazardly processed by the industrial butchers which provide millions of chickens to Costco. (I think this is the most likely answer.)
3) The chickens are roughly and haphazardly loaded on to spits prior to cooking by the people at Costco.

 

[geist1223]

I thought COSTCO had its own Facilities to raise and process Chickens.

 

[1Melanie]

I thought COSTCO had its own Facilities to raise and process Chickens.

They do. They lose money on those chickens so in an effort to maintain the same low price, they decided to own the farm too.

 

[Passepartout]

I didn't answer because I don't have an answer.

Me too. There is something VERY wrong about industrial farming. In suppose that by parting with my five bucks at Costco, I'm in a way supporting it. but that doesn't mean I think it's right or a good way to treat another creature. In feel the same way driving past the cattle feedlots and dairies hereabouts. I'm more inclined to buy a half or quarter of an FFA or 4H kid's labor of love when they auction them off.

We also have a hive of bees that we acquired from a local friendly beekeeper. We lost a hive last year (they all died- probably hadn't made enough honey to sustain themselves through the winter), and the new bees were rescued from an old house. They are very strong and are doing well. We get a pint of honey from 'our' bees in exchange for having the hive in the back yard. I really enjoy plopping my butt into a lawn chair near the hive and watching the coming and going of the bees. They are harmless unless you threaten them, so it's good to have a few thousand friends. Maybe I'll post some pictures of the hive and it's inhabitants. when they get more active. Yesterday, it finally got up to 60 and sunny, so it was the first day the bees have been out doing their thing.

JIm

 

[ScoopKona]

Me too. There is something VERY wrong about industrial farming.

Well, you know me. I just want people to know what they're buying -- and to get what they're paying for.

If people saw CAFOs and big agricorp poultry, it would turn their stomach. The average person is willfully blind to what is going on -- as long as the food is cheap and loaded with fat and salt.

None of this is sustainable. But it also isn't going to change anytime soon. Big chains are winning this war. And the food landscape is like the opening sentence of A Tale of Two Cities. Small farms and restaurants can carve out a niche and sell superlative food to an educated market. But the masses don't want any of that because it's expensive.

 

[geist1223]

For several months prior to College I worked at a Chicken Processing Plant. I was one of four guys that took the Chickens out of the Trucks and hung them upside down in the moving chain shackles. I changed gloves every truck, coveralls at lunch time. I did laundry every other day. So 8 pairs of gloves and 4 sets of coveralls. The Chickens that did not pass inspection for human consumption went to Pet Food Processing Plants.

 

[CO skier]

None of this is sustainable. But it also isn't going to change anytime soon. Big chains are winning this war. And the food landscape is like the opening sentence of A Tale of Two Cities. Small farms and restaurants can carve out a niche and sell superlative food to an educated market. But the masses don't want any of that because it's expensive.

Agri-business keeps this nation from third world country status in terms of food. You think feeding a 330,000,000 and ever increasing population is even possible from "small farms"?
We buy 3-4 Costco rotisserie chickens per month because it is a real inflation buster over the past couple years. (Have not noticed any change in taste or quality.) 6 servings of "comfort food" from the chicken, plus a couple more when the remnant are deviled into chicken salad sandwiches. Then the carcass is converted into about a gallon of the best chicken broth for chicken noodle soup, chicken gravy, or sauce for other dishes. All that for $4.99.

Do not even get me started on the prices in restaurants. I no longer patronize the restaurant where the bacon wrapped filet is now $60. Instead, when I do order from a restaurant, it is the $20 Tour of Italy from Olive Garden or the $35 Whole Maine Lobster from Red Lobster, because that is where the relative bargains are. People vote with their wallets.

 

[ScoopKona]

You think feeding a 330,000,000 and ever increasing population is even possible from "small farms"?

Absolutely. Other countries feed similar/larger populations without farms best described as industrial squalor. The food tastes better, too. Japan, for instance, feeds a population half our size with only a tiny fraction of the arable land we enjoy. Step one is getting average people to eat what's local and in season.

High fructose corn syrup isn't doing this country any favors. Neither is anything being put out by the Darden Group. It's a false economy. Anyone who thinks about the business model understands they're paying an awful lot of money for what is basically a TV dinner, loaded with salt, which is heated -- not cooked. This is food which is largely assembled in factories.

It's the difference between a loaf of sourdough bread, and a loaf of Wonder bread. The sourdough costs a little more. But it's actually good for you. It's not loaded with sugar. Once consumers get hooked on the inferior product (and "hooked" is the best way to describe what's happening), they'll eschew healthy food for their salty-fatty-sugary fix.

 

[CO skier]

Japan, for instance, feeds a population half our size with only a tiny fraction of the arable land we enjoy.

You should check your "facts" like I did. Japan is highly dependent on imported food; its calorie self-sufficiency was only 38% in 2021.

The USA is 100% self-sufficient in eggs, dairy, chicken, pork, turkey meat, and even beef. Not to mention grains ...

 

[ScoopKona]

You should check your "facts" like I did. Japan is highly dependent on imported food; its calorie self-sufficiency was only 38% in 2021.

The USA is 100% self-sufficient in eggs, dairy, chicken, pork, turkey meat, and even beef. Not to mention grains ...

Puh-leeze. We're not growing the world's cheapest food because of altruism. We're doing it to make a buck. It isn't natural that you can buy a oooked chicken at Costco for less than they're selling raw chicken.

I'm willing to bet my farm that suits at Costco would very much prefer that we stop talking about their rotisserie chickens and go back to ignoring the man behind the curtain.

And again, we're the only country doing this. No country in the developed world is raising animals this way. No country in the DEVELOPING world is raising animals this way. Just the US. I would like to think this would cause people to step back and question why an entire roasted chicken costs less than a flat of blueberries. But for the same reason people are drawn like moths to dirt-cheap all-you-can-eat buffets, and chain restaurants which only tout how cheap they are, I doubt any meaningful change will happen. At least not until our average life span becomes a national embarrassment.

 

[geist1223]

Puh-leeze. We're not growing the world's cheapest food because of altruism. We're doing it to make a buck.

¿How is that a negative? More power to us.