Did Costco Really Discontinue Its Fan-Favorite Kirkland Chocolate Chips?

Brace yourselves, frugal bakers. Costco has forsaken us. The warehouse giant is reportedly discontinuing both the red and blue bags of its Kirkland Signature chocolate chips. If you've used the Costco baking aisle staple, you can understand the wave of distress such a decision has caused among shoppers loyal to the product's quality and affordability.

Indeed, Kirkland's chocolate chips are (were?) some of the best on the market. Especially when it comes to the blue (51% cacao) bag, the gourmet flavor is trumped only by the product's price tag. For many, it's likely one of those foods you should always buy at Costco.

The news surfaced in a July 31 Reddit post, and it quickly gained traction among mainstream and food news outlets alike, thanks in large part to pantheons of bewildered Kirkland chip fans. The response to this change has been less than favorable, partly due to the backlash against Costco's planned replacement with Nestlé-brand chocolate chips, which has lower cocoa-sourcing and (frankly) overall product standards. Frustrated shoppers are using social media to call for protests and feedback campaigns to stop the retailer's planned transition before it's too late.

Savage though it may be, Costco likely has a logical reason for this discontinuation. And if you guessed that climate change has something to do with it, give yourself a pat on the back. Unfortunately for chocolate lovers everywhere, the cocoa industry is in full-on meltdown mode.

That makes it tough, even for a large company like Costco, to maintain competitive pricing on such high-quality products that require increasingly expensive ingredients. This has likely forced Costco to make the switch to Nestlé (of Tollhouse cookie fame), which is more cost-effective than Costco's current offerings. Costco could probably continue to manufacture its product, but the company would likely rather sell Nestlé's already notoriously average product (utilizing ingredients of questionable origin) than ruin its own product's stellar reputation by lowering quality.

But the sudden switch has left shoppers unsettled. Kirkland's chips were more than just deliciously cheap — they also provided many shoppers with an allergy-friendly option. It's going to take some bakers time to adjust and find a suitable alternative. Even those who stocked up may eventually run out.

If you're looking for a good price, there's a reason Costco is going with Nestlé. The switch could potentially cost customers more than they used to pay for the Kirkland brand, but apparently, it would have been worse, price-wise, to stick with the original. And depending on what Costco chooses to stock, Nestlé has lots of chocolate chip options, including a 53% cacao version and allergy-friendly offerings.

Shoppers looking for better-than-average quality may have to skip Costco. But better brands come with a higher price that may keep getting higher, and "better flavor" is subjective. The organic brand Equal Exchange offers a creamy texture and balanced sweetness. Guittard provides rich flavor and several cacao percentages to choose from. Ghirardelli and Callebaut are known for superior flavor and melting qualities. And SunSpire and 365 Everyday Value are value brands with multiple flavors and cacao percentages available. To find a chocolate you like, you may have to taste several chocolate brands before choosing one to bake with.

Kirkland-brand chocolate chip fans continue to reel online, with many Costco members calling for a semi-organized protest campaign. Despite customer outcry, Costco's decision is locked in for the foreseeable future and may be more heavily influenced by the financial outlook of the cacao industry. One — and by "one," we mean Costco, probably — wonders if the same outraged customers would pay top dollar for their beloved Kirkland chocolate chips. Some likely would. But would it be enough to overcome the volatile cacao market? That's Costco's risk to take.