Does Costco Grind Its Own Beef In-House? Or Somewhere Else?

Whether you're tossing some burgers on the grill or making tender, flavorful meatballs for an Italian-inspired dish, it's always best when the ground beef is as fresh as can be. Unfortunately, the color of ground beef doesn't necessarily indicate how recently it was processed. So what's the deal with Costco's ground beef? Has it taken a cross-country journey before landing in the meat section or is it ground on-site?

You can rest easy, ground beef aficionados: Costco does its grinding in-house daily. Matt Abdoo, executive chef and co-founder of Pig Beach BBQ, who previously discussed the quality of Costco's ground beef with The Takeout, said, "They are constantly bringing in fresh meat and trimmings that are ground frequently throughout the day." A Redditor who says they work at the big-box store backed up Abdoo's comment. They indicated it begins with what the store calls bull meat. That grinds down to a 95/5 meat-to-fat ratio. Then they grind the trimmings from other cuts of beef and mix that in, striving to attain around a 12% fat content when everything is said and done.

Abdoo noted in that same interview: "Costco also typically uses Choice-grade beef or higher, so you're starting with a higher-quality product." The employee on Reddit added that occasionally premium cuts like flank steak, tri-tip, and wagyu chuck are ground with the trim if the store is sitting on an excess of those cuts. Because Costco designates such ground beef as a regrind, the meat is labeled with a small "R" above the package date, and can only be sold to customers until 4 p.m. to guarantee they aren't buying old beef.

Although Costco's ground beef is freshly ground on-site, shoppers don't always enjoy the range of meat-to-fat ratios they'd like to see. For example, you should probably avoid Costco's ground beef if you want a juicy burger (unless you're buying the mammoth 10-pound tubes the store sells for folks hosting a block party — those can have up to 27% fat). With just a 12% fat content, the burger is likely to dry out by the time it's fully cooked. A common recommendation for a good burger is an 80/20 meat-to-fat ratio, and some folks prefer their ground beef even fattier at 70/30.

You might think that if you asked the person behind the deli window super nicely they would grind you a mix that fits your needs. Unfortunately, you would be wrong. As a general rule, Costco employees don't fulfill special requests for custom grinds or cuts, so if you're looking for ground beef with a higher fat ratio you'll be out of luck at the discount warehouse.

Of course, lean ground beef is good for other dishes. When used in chili, stroganoff, and other foods with moisture it's still a dinnertime hero. And because the meat department is busy grinding it every day, you know you're getting a fresh product regardless of the fat content.