Costco is great for a lot of things, but unfortunately, fresh produce doesn’t seem to be one of them. It’s not uncommon for customers to complain about the quality of the retail chain’s fruits and veggies, but this time they’re furious. In a now-viral Reddit chain, one customer posted a photo of severely overripe avocados that they purchased from the store and said they had to throw “the whole bag out.”
Costco produce misses the mark
In the photo Reddit user @Amazing-Bag posted, the avocados are mostly brown, with hints of green here and there. Truth be told, they look nasty. “Avocados nearly broke my wife’s spirit,” @Amazing-Bag said. “Never seen them like that before.”
They continued, “It’s like getting coal for Christmas.”
And other customers agreed, posting their experiences with Costco produce in the comments. “I have had terrible luck with the Costco avocados and refuse to buy them. They seem to go from rock hard to completely moldy with no stage in between,” one user recounted. “Even the usual trick of ripening them in a paper bag doesn’t seem to work for Costco avocados. I don’t get it.”
“I love Costco. I hate Costco produce. I think their distribution system just isn’t set up for it,” one user suggested. “Agreed,” another customer replied. “Their produce game has gone to hell in the last several years.”
“Lots of things are great at Costco,” one user said, “Exceptions: avocados and bananas.”
“I never buy veg and produce from Costco and this is why,” another customer added.
Customers' tips for choosing the right avocados
In the same Reddit thread, many customers had sympathy for everyone buying poor quality produce, and offered some of their tips.
"The perfect avocado should give just slightly when touched at the skin, but not give easily; and the stem will be intact yet able to be moved without coming off easily," one user explained. "When I'm buying avocados from Costco I always make sure at least 4/5 of the bag have stem firmly intact. The 5th, non-stem, will have a bright green indent. I won’t buy them if I can’t meet these criteria."
Another avocado lover shared their system: "I buy roughly 24 avocados at a time, make sure they are the hardest, greenest, I can find. Then when I get home I immediately place them in the fridge and bring out a single avocado per day over a 3 day period," they explained. "Usually on the 3rd day the 1st avocado is ripe and ready to eat. Then I just gradually swap in avocados. I haven't had one spoil yet since I started that 5 months ago."
Hopefully with these tips, Costco shoppers will start having more success with their produce!
