Costco has 130 million cardholders as of early 2024. The store is known for selling goods in bulk, having cheap food court items, and even having a travel department. An important thing about the company that brings in a lot of customers is its own brand, Kirkland Signature. Kirkland products range from grocery items to kitchen products to gasoline. You can usually buy a lot of private-label brand products, and they are usually a lot cheaper than name-brand products. What company makes these things? The answer isn’t clear because different products are made by different companies, some of which are very well known. It is said that the well-known tuna brand Bumble Bee makes Costco’s canned tuna, and it is said that Grey Goose makes Costco’s vodka. Advertisement.
So, what company makes Costco’s bacon? If history is any indication, it might be Hormel, a well-known food processing company. Hormel is known for foods such as bacon, pepperoni, and chili. Hormel was also the first known manufacturer of Costcos bacon, though that public partnership has ended. It’s also possible that Costco has switched to a different bacon maker; it’s still a mystery.
As a Costco shopper, you’ve likely picked up packages of their popular private label Kirkland Signature Bacon. Ever wonder where this bacon comes from and who makes it? Costco is famously tight-lipped about the suppliers behind their private label products But after some digging, we’ve uncovered some clues about the origins of Kirkland bacon.
Why Costco Keeps Suppliers Secret
Costco is known for offering quality products at bargain prices. A big reason they’re able to do this is by ordering huge quantities of private label Kirkland items directly from manufacturers and suppliers, cutting out middleman markups.
But Costco is notoriously secretive about the companies who produce these Kirkland products Why? Likely to maintain leverage in price negotiations with suppliers Costco demands rock-bottom prices, Revealing supplier names could jeopardize the killer deals Costco drives for its members,
Costco also may wish to shield suppliers from being deluged with individual orders if their names got out. As a big-box giant, Costco wants to ensure it can lock in the production capacity it needs from suppliers.
So who makes those mountains of mouthwatering bacon Costco sells for suspiciously cheap prices? Let’s see if we can connect the dots using available clues.
How Costco’s Private Label Program Works
To understand who makes Kirkland bacon, it helps to know a bit about Costco’s overall private label program:
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Costco has purchasing offices around the world sourcing products for the Kirkland Signature brand. They scour suppliers for quality merchandise at ultra-low prices.
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Kirkland items are produced by various name-brand manufacturers and contract suppliers. Costco does not own or operate its own manufacturing facilities.
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Suppliers who win Kirkland contracts must sign confidentiality agreements prohibiting them from disclosing they supply those products to Costco.
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To ensure quality control, Kirkland products undergo rigorous testing protocols including lab analysis, consumer studies, taste tests, and more.
Armed with this background, we can make some educated guesses on the likely producers of Kirkland bacon…
The Top Bacon Brands Are Prime Suspects
Though shrouded in secrecy, industry insiders have dropped hints over the years on who supplies bacon for Kirkland Signature. The major pork producers and bacon brands in the U.S. are the prime suspects. This includes giants like:
Oscar Mayer – Owned by Kraft Heinz, Oscar Mayer dominates the retail bacon market with beloved bacon brands like Oscar Mayer and Louis Rich. Could Oscar Mayer be sizzling up some of that Kirkland bacon?
Hormel – Known for classics like Black Label and Turkey bacon, Hormel is one of the largest bacon makers around. Perhaps they provide piggy power to Kirkland?
Smithfield – The world’s biggest pork producer, Smithfield sells popular bacon brands like Smithfield Premium and Gwaltney Great for Bacon. Are they bacon benefactors to Costco’s private label?
Tyson – This meat powerhouse sells Wright Brand bacon in retail and foodservice channels. Tyson has the scale to pump out pallets of bacon for Costco’s Kirkland brand.
Farmland – A division of Smithfield, Farmland Foods is a major pork processor and bacon producer. They have potential to produce Kirkland bacon for their parent company, Smithfield.
Clues Point to Smithfield as the Primary Supplier
Though Costco refuses official confirmation, food industry experts have shared inside intelligence over the years that points to Smithfield as the main supplier of Kirkland Signature bacon. Here are the clues:
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In a 2016 lawsuit, it was alleged Smithfield provided 75-80% of the bacon sold under the Kirkland label. This points to Smithfield as the top bacon source for Costco.
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Smithfield has major pork processing facilities strategically located near Costco distribution hubs like California’s Tracy warehouse. This enables affordable logistics for supplying huge volumes of bacon.
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Former Smithfield CEO Larry Pope alluded to the supplier relationship by stating “We’re delighted to be a supplier and delighted to be expanding with them.” Reading between the lines points to Smithfield and Costco’s partnership.
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As the world’s largest pork producer with massive production capacity, Smithfield has the capabilities to churn outenqueue mountains of bacon for Costco week after week.
Though not directly confirmed, these crumbs of evidence strongly suggest Smithfield is the key bacon supplier for Kirkland Signature. But they are possibly one of several suppliers in Costco’s bacon supply chain.
Why Smithfield Makes Sense as Costco’s Top Bacon Supplier
There are several good reasons why Smithfield appears to be the primary bacon producer behind Kirkland bacon:
Scale of production – With dozens of processing plants across the U.S., Smithfield has incredible supply capacity to meet Costco’s high-volume demands.
Distribution network – Smithfield has facilities optimized to service Costco warehouses regionally, enabling affordable logistics.
Quality standards – Smithfield is known for rigorous quality control and food safety procedures, which aligns with Costco’s standards for its Kirkland brand.
Cost efficiencies – As a vertically integrated company, Smithfield can control costs throughout bacon production and offer rock-bottom pricing.
Private labeling experience – Smithfield has extensive experience producing bacon for major retail chains under their own brands, making them a natural fit to supply Costco.
Other Potential Producers of Kirkland Bacon
Though clues point heavily to Smithfield as the lead supplier of Kirkland bacon, it’s quite possible Costco utilizes multiple suppliers:
Farmland Foods – This Smithfield subsidiary specializes in pork processing and could supplement Smithfield’s Kirkland production.
Oscar Mayer – With famous brands and consumer trust, Oscar Mayer has the distribution network and resources to compete for Costco contracts.
Hormel – Affordable pricing and a track record in private labeling make Hormel an ideal contender to help supply Kirkland bacon.
Tyson – As the 2nd largest U.S. meat processor, Tyson likely vies for Kirkland bacon contracts and supplemental volumes.
JBS USA – One of the largest meat processors worldwide, JBS and its Plumrose brand bacon products are well-poised to produce for Costco.
While the true identity of Costco’s bacon suppliers remains classified information, the available evidence strongly suggests that bacon titan Smithfield leads the sizzle in producing our beloved Kirkland Signature Bacon. So next time you fry up those delicious strips for breakfast, you can credit the flavorful taste and irresistible aroma to secret recipes from Smithfield!
The Takeaway: Kirkland Represents Quality and Value
At the end of the day, as a Costco member you don’t need to know who specifically cooks up your Kirkland bacon. You just need to know that Costco has thoroughly vetted suppliers to ensure that irresistible Kirkland bacon consistently delivers top-notch quality and value.
And you can feel good that when you cook up Kirkland bacon for Sunday breakfast, you’re feeding your family flavorful strips produced by a leading bacon brand like Smithfield under rigorous specifications – all for a bargain price! That’s why we love Kirkland. Mystery solved!
The history of Costco’s bacon
The companies that make many other Kirkland Signature products have been named, but the company that makes Kirkland Signature bacon has not been confirmed. When Costco started making its own bacon for the first time in 2004, a corporate buyer went to different bacon plants to find the best ones. This turned out to be hard to do, so Costco and Hormel finally worked together to make co-branded bacon that was sliced thicker than Hormel’s own bacon. The bacon was pre-cooked, and the thicker slices didnt shrink like regular bacon. It quickly became a crowd favorite. Because of the co-branding, there was no secret that Hormel was behind the original Costco bacon. Advertisement.
While that first iteration, which was introduced 20 years ago, has since been phased out in American stores, Costco does still sell Kirkland Signature bacon. The company hasnt revealed who makes the hickory-smoked bacon sold today, though some people speculate that Hormel is still behind the pre-packaged meat. Others, unhappy with the quality of the new product, dont believe Hormel still makes Kirkland bacon. Some Reddit users have complained on r/Costco about the branding change. “Havent seen the Hormel brand in our store for a year or more, but yes, the quality went down when the name came off,” one user wrote. Its possible that Hormel is still making the bacon using a different formulation, but its also possible that its an entirely different manufacturer. Advertisement
We Finally Know Why Costco’s Bacon Is So Cheap
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