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. The reasons behind Costco's change 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 me.
