Costco - making me think about becoming a member again.

[DAPUNISHER]

I hope MAGA boycotts the one here so I can join. I don't like giving money to Sam's, but scan&go is a killer app, and the only Costco in the county is too crowded.

 

[nakedfrog]

If your honey crystallizes, you can gently heat it (search up methods) to restore it to liquid form.
Spices and ketchup both keep for a long time.

 

[Moonbeam]

I don't buy things like ketchup at Costco as a single guy for the reason you said. Although I use it more than you do, that would still be way too much for me. I use enough honey to not waste much, if at all, due to it hardening up. I like it over yogurt a lot. I do use mayo, and don't need as much as they sell of Hellman's, but I also want it healthier, so I buy the regular sized Chosen Mayo with avocado oil. It's so much cheaper than in the grocery stores. Chosen is a pricey brand.

I don't buy spices there except for sugar, which I keep stored away. I use 1 teaspoon a day in each cup of my coffee or tea, two cups daily. I also buy better than bouillon there, as that lasts forever. If I know I'm going camping I'll grab one of their montreal seasonings or some other kind of bbq or meat seasoning. But yeah, otherwise the spices are all too much for me in general.

I do not buy much of any produce at all at Costco due to my small household. I've gotten asparagus there sometimes and just go on an asparagus tear that week. Spinach, if I cook any for my dog.

I do get dry goods like the organic granola, or some barely sweetened cereals. I don't buy the same cereal everytime or each time, I'll get sick of it. But I can have it enough for it to be fine and not wasted at all. Boxed broth for cooking soups/stews and stuff. I get dried ramen noodles. The sardines with skin on and bones in are great there, and last forever. Stuff for my dog like the greenies there and the wet cat food. Every other trip or so I'll buy a bag of chips or snack, usually on the healthier tip. Definitely the chicken parts. I'll buy other meat sometimes, but freeze. Like flank steak I'll find the lightest one, go home, cook half, freeze the other half, stuff like that. I definitely check the weights of the meats there as I often find one that is quite a bit more light than the others, depending on the cut. I buy the kitchen garbage bags there, paper towels, and toilet paper. I have some storage room downstairs otherwise I would not be able to fit it.

I have spent $22,000 a pop at Costco and am an executive member. (Bragging, of course, no enlightened person wold say something like that) I shop there quite often but I like the pelican my beak can hold more than my belly can. I often buy more than I can eat. I like shiitake mushrooms with baby bok choy and can get both at my local Costco but in huge amounts. I add sesame oil and oyster sauce in a stir fry. But to use everything would take several days.

I have been shopping at Costco because of their employee policies for many many years and word of that decency was what first got me to become a member. Except for avocados I buy almost exclusively organic. I don't eat a lot of avocado at one time. I also enjoy an asparagus binge but only Best Foods mayo (Hellsman's on your side of the US) will do it for me. Childhood thingi I suspect. Making home made is on my bucket list if I live long enough. Eat well.

 

[akugami]

Even as a family of five, we're not able to finish all of the foods fresh. A lot of the meats and seafood gets used fresh when we buy it, but not the whole portion. We split out the big packs of meat, seafood, and poultry, into manageable portions, and freeze what we don't eat fresh right away. We don't bother with vacuum packs since we use the foods relatively quickly. Vacuum sealing would just be wasteful at that point.

 

[Moonbeam]

If your honey crystallizes, you can gently heat it (search up methods) to restore it to liquid form.
Spices and ketchup both keep for a long time.

I used to keep bees. I really prefer orange blossom or clover honey to most lower priced brands, but I don't use it very often so I just buy in small jars. Not a good price per oz proposition.

 

[esquared]

Looks like Levi's is joining with Costco by NOT getting rid of DEI

Levi Strauss shareholders vote against proposal to end diversity programs

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/levi-strauss-shareholders-vote-against-211200077.html

"Over the past year, major companies including Walmart, Target and Amazon.com have rolled back their DEI policies, aimed at women, ethnic minorities, LGBTQ+ people and other traditionally underrepresented groups.

More than 99% of Levi Strauss' shareholders voted against the proposal at the annual meeting of shareholders held on April 23, the filing said.

Similarly, in January, more than 98% of Costco Wholesale shareholders voted against a proposal requesting a report on the risks of maintaining its diversity and inclusion initiatives."

 

[nakedfrog]

Looks like Levi's is joining with Costco by NOT getting rid of DEI

Levi Strauss shareholders vote against proposal to end diversity programs

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/levi-strauss-shareholders-vote-against-211200077.html

"Over the past year, major companies including Walmart, Target and Amazon.com have rolled back their DEI policies, aimed at women, ethnic minorities, LGBTQ+ people and other traditionally underrepresented groups.

More than 99% of Levi Strauss' shareholders voted against the proposal at the annual meeting of shareholders held on April 23, the filing said.

Similarly, in January, more than 98% of Costco Wholesale shareholders voted against a proposal requesting a report on the risks of maintaining its diversity and inclusion initiatives."

Speaking of Costco and Target...

For Kryztal Peña, a Target run used to be her weekly ritual.

Peña, a Chicago-based hospital researcher and mom of two young children, loved going to the store as her “stress coping mechanism” to walk the aisles, buy diapers and get her family out of the house.

But since February, she has not done her shopping there. After Donald Trump got re-elected, Target, one of the nation’s largest retailers, said in January that it would end the diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) goals it had made to hire and promote more women and people of color, as well as to recruit more diverse suppliers to stay “in step with the evolving external landscape,” according to a company memo sent to employees.

Peña saw social media posts about the “Latino Freeze” to protest Target’s actions and decided to follow suit by boycotting the store. The first two weeks were hard. “I definitely did miss it, but it is what it is,” she said. But she has since created new habits.

Now, when Peña is low on diapers, she shops at Costco, a brand that has won praise for continuing to honor DEI principles when many companies have rolled theirs back. Peña said it would take much more than an apology at this point to get her to go back to Target.

When Turner first launched a boycott of Target earlier this year, it coincided with Black History Month. During that time, Target’s foot traffic went down 6.5% compared to its year-over-year performance, while Costco’s shot up 7.5%.

Foot traffic at Target stores, in general, has dropped for 11 straight weeks, according to Placer.ai, while foot traffic at Costco has been steadily increasing over the past 16 weeks. Target did not respond to questions about whether a reported drop in foot traffic can be linked to its decision to end DEI programs.

Black And Latine Shoppers Continue To Boycott Target — And It Might Be Working. Here's Why.

Why this long-term boycott could spark "generational change."

www.huffpost.com

 

[MrSquished]

guess i'm buying jeans at Costco next time I see Levi there.

 

[evident]

The changed that law in NJ earlier this year or last. Members only

Late reply, but while this is true for the state i think the local township fought and won under some guise that when the costco was built they were to have gas open for everyone in the community.

Some shit to avoid buying at costco:

"Contractor Grade" 100' hoses - Returned two of these POS's. they kink if you look at them wrong. I'm just going with flexzilla on amazon from now on, even though they get nasty in color over time. they still work great and don't kink
non organic chicken packs - been tasting like rubber any time i've bought it in the last 2 years. Even trying to meal prep in utility meals it tastes nasty.
Their beef has been really hit or miss for me and it's pretty much priced the same as the wegmans next door and i think wegmans has better quality beef.
First their pre-cut meats are blade tenderized (look it up) and as i posted before their uncut ribeye was bad, like bruised and beaten meat. happened to me twice in the last year.

I've had good luck with their norway salmon, lamb (any cut), beef short ribs, turkey burger packs

 

[Muse]

Speaking of Costco and Target...

Black And Latine Shoppers Continue To Boycott Target — And It Might Be Working. Here's Why.

Why this long-term boycott could spark "generational change."

www.huffpost.com

Foot traffic at Target stores, in general, has dropped for 11 straight weeks, according to Placer.ai, while foot traffic at Costco has been steadily increasing over the past 16 weeks. Target did not respond to questions about whether a reported drop in foot traffic can be linked to its decision to end DEI programs.

My last Costco run was Friday, 10 days ago. Got there maybe a little after 10AM. The foot traffic was exceptional! I figure I'll be back in a week.

 

[hal2kilo]

I used to keep bees. I really prefer orange blossom or clover honey to most lower priced brands, but I don't use it very often so I just buy in small jars. Not a good price per oz proposition.

One of the few benefits of living in FL for a while was cheap orange blossom honey, and guava jelly.
Edit: when I first started working for the company I retired from back in 1980 (headquartered in Anaheim, CA) there were still a few orange groves around. They since all disappeared. The closest orange grove I remember seeing in that area, was all the way out in Temecula wine country.