The Famous Brands Behind The Costco Kirkland Items You Love

Exclusive access to Kirkland Signature products is one of the many perks afforded to Costco members who are often left wondering what famous brands are behind the goods. It's true that some can be discerned by the color scheme, labeling style, and even the shape of the package itself, but that isn't always the case. What's more, while some companies — including some international beverage giants — are proud to keep their own name beside the Kirkland Signature mark on the label, ongoing anonymity has sometimes been shattered by unfortunate circumstances.

Sure, some companies have touted their connection to Costco in interviews or press releases, eager to let members know who was responsible for K-Cup Pods or the ice cream in the freezer section and food court alike. Other cases found famous brands only being revealed after concerning health recalls or, in one instance, a class action lawsuit that challenged a claim about a canned good.

Counted among the vinegars you should always have in your pantry, traditional balsamic vinegar comes from one of two Italian provinces. In the case of Kirkland Signature's product, that means Modena rather than Reggio Emilia and it's made available by the world's largest producer of certified balsamic vinegar, Acetum. Though some of the exclusive brands available in Costco warehouses keep their deals with the club under wraps, this Italian company is one of those that proudly displays its name on the bottle.

Sold as a two-pack with each bottle containing nearly 34 ounces — or 1 liter — the name isn't all that Acetum displays on its packaging. It also includes both its PGI certification, affirming its guarantee under the Protected Geographical Indication logo, as well as its inclusion in the Balsamic Vinegar Consortium. This marker means that Costco customers can remain assured that their balsamic vinegar is the real deal and not some counterfeit or imitation.

Until 2024, when Total Wine & More had surpassed it, Costco held the title as the largest wine purveyor in the country. Additionally, where permitted by law, warehouses across the nation carry selections of alcohol. Alongside popular name brands, clubs also sell Kirkland Signature varieties which, for those who fancy a single malt or blended Scotch whisky, means you're getting your hands on a product sourced from Alexander Murray & Co.

In 2004, Scottish expatriate Steve Lipp had founded his bottling business in Calabasas, California. However, little more is known about the product available to Costco members beyond the extent to which the Scotch whisky has been aged, the alcohol content of each bottle, and the flavor profile. The precise source of Alexander Murray & Co.'s libations remains a secret beyond indicating which of the five regions in Scotland it hails from, those being: Campbeltown, Islay, Speyside, The Highlands, and The Lowlands, of which the latter two each boast a Sherry-cask finished single malt.

Among the bulk buys available at Costco, canned goods remain a popular way to rack up savings. However, it was allegations of something else that wasn't necessarily being saved that led to the revelation that Kirkland Signature's wild caught tuna products come courtesy of Bumble Bee Tuna. While the deal had been struck with the San Diego headquartered company dating back to 2002, this hadn't become public knowledge until two decades later as part of a class action lawsuit over whether or not the products were "dolphin safe."

Within the suit, the attorneys for the plaintiff had claimed that "false advertising" on the packaging was misleading about the practices used to fish the tuna meant to "neither kill nor harm dolphins." Despite an attempt to see the case dismissed in January 2023, it carried on until a settlement had been reached leading to the ultimate dismissal in November that same year.

For some sweet treat savorers, ice cream isn't worth having if it isn't from their preferred brand like Häagen-Dazs, Ben & Jerry's, or Blue Bell with a TikTok thrilling comeback flavor. So for those wondering what company is behind the Super Premium Vanilla Ice Cream found in the freezer section of Costco, the answer is California's own Humboldt Creamery. Established in 1929, Humboldt boasts an ideal climate for dairy farming thanks to flooding depositing minerals from the mountains into the soil on which the cows graze.

As to when Humboldt made clear that it's brand was behind the Kirkland Signature product, then-CEO Rich Ghilarducci had explained in an interview with the North Coast Journal Weekly in 2006 that they handled the domestic and international ice cream for the warehouse, shipping product across the United States, as well as to Asia, Europe, and Mexico. Additionally, Humboldt also claims responsibility for the ice cream available at Costco's food court where membership is one of a number of rules.

Green tea fans have a major league connection when it comes to procuring their favorite brew at Costco. That's because Ito En, the brand behind the bags, isn't just one of the top soft drink suppliers in Japan. It also scored a partnership deal with baseball's Shohei Ohtani. The arrangement was announced in 2024, the same year the all star pitcher turned an injury into a an MVP-winning season as a designated hitter.

While Ohtani's deal promotes the bottled Oi Ocha drink, an unsweetened green tea available at Costco, it is Ito En's 100-count case of tea bags that bear both their brand and the Kirkland Signature brand on the label. Promoted as compatible with either hot or cold brewing, the tea is described as a blend of Sencha, processed with the minimum number of steps, and Matcha to give the beverage a flavor boost. The product of Japan also touts its nylon bag, said to improve the flow of water as the beverage brews.

It's true that selective decision making goes into whether brand names are known to Costco shoppers or if that information will be kept secret. However, there are certain situations where anonymity goes out the window. Such a case occurred in 2020 when concerns over a possible food-borne illness meant the reveal of the brand behind Kirkland Signature's pre-cooked, frozen shrimp: Kader Exports.

While global markets were still reeling from supply chain setbacks brought on by the response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the India-based Kader Exports announced a possible Salmonella contamination for 1 pound, 1.5 pound, and 2 pound packages in August of that year. In addition to Kirkland Signature, supplies from the seafood exporter had gone to Aqua Star, Censea, Fresh Market, Wellsley Farms, and more. The product in question had been distributed across the United State between February and May of 2020 and consumers were advised to exercise caution due to the health risk from the bacteria which range from gastrointestinal issues and fever to serious and potentially fatal infections. Three years later, a different shrimp recall involving street tacos would be counted among the biggest recalls to ever hit Costco.

President Thomas Jefferson once deemed coffee "the favorite beverage of the civilized world," and many would argue after more than 200 years that still rings true. Like much of modern society, the Founding Fathers could not envision how the then-fledgling nation would shape up, or that one day one brand would be the name in caffeinated convenience. What had started as a deal in 2012 between Costco and Green Mountain Coffee Roasters, Inc. had remained when the company rebranded two years later as part of the union into Keurig Green Mountain, Inc.

In either case, the K-Cup Pods come in varieties like Pacific Bold, Breakfast Blend, and Summit Roast under the Kirkland Signature label. As the deal had been announced, the impact was readily apparent for the brand synonymous with at-home, single-serve coffee machines. According to a report from Reuters, shares for then-GMCR had recorded a bump of 9% thanks to the announcement. Before the decade would close, Keurig Green Mountain would mark yet another merger growing its famous brand even further as it joined Dr Pepper Snapple Group to become Keurig Dr Pepper to help keep the "civilized world" sipping on its favorite drink.

Likely the first name that comes to mind when you think of cranberry juice, Ocean Spray also happens to be one of the brands that includes its own mark on a two-pack product sold under the Kirkland Signature label. The exclusive cranberry juice blend combines Ocean Spray's 100% juice cranberry with apple and grape juice without any added sugar. At 96 ounces in each container — or nearly 3 liters — the two-pack amounts to two dozen 8 ounce servings with a full day's recommended serving of vitamin C.

For those not interested in a blend and looking for just the cranberry juice, Costco's also sell the 12-count pack of Ocean Spray's cranberry juice cocktail. In addition to leaving out the apple and grape juice, this package does not include a Kirkland Signature label on it or the exclusivity that such a mark entails. What it does include is the brand's popular cranberries harvested by farmers across the United States, Canada, and even in Chile.

From experiencing a short supply on breast milk to dealing with the sensitivities of a newborn, parents who've had to rely on supplementing their child's nutrition with formula understand the corresponding pitfalls. That includes the hefty price tag that so often comes along with the specialized nutrition, which is why Perrigo, the brand behind Kirkland Signature ProCare infant formula promotes its product at Costco as having the lowest price per ounce compared to similar formulas from Enfamil and Similac.

Comparable in meeting or exceeding the nutrient requirements as laid out by the U.S. Food & Drug Administration, the table of Enfamil's Neuropro Infant, Similac's Pro-Advance, and Kirkland Signature's ProCare shows the latter having equal or greater numbers in most every category. The only metrics where it doesn't surpass the competition is in grams of carbohydrates and water, which Enfamil edged out 11.3 to 10.5 and 133 to 132 respectively. As for the price per ounce determination, Perrigo bases that assessment off of the average consumption per week for the first year using Circana sales data from April 2023.

Yet another product in Costco's freezer section to find its brand made publicly known as part of an FDA recall is Townsend Farms. Before 2019, it wasn't readily apparent who was behind Kirkland Signature's Three Berry Blend, considered one of the under $15 frozen must-buys. That changed in June of that year when one of the three berries that comprise the blend presented the possible risk of a Hepatitis A contamination. Out of a combined package of frozen raspberries, blueberries, and blackberries, it was the latter that had given cause for concern.

According to the recall, none of the packages produced for Costco had tested positive for the liver damaging virus, and it was out of an abundance of caution that the recall had been issued. As for the reach of the recall, the FDA had indicated that only products shipped to the state of Hawaii or California's Los Angeles and San Diego with best by dates spanning February to May of 2020 were included.