Superstore Costco is beloved for its bulk items and great deals-after all, where else can you buy a varied assortment of products for such low prices?!
But as much as customers love hitting up Costco for their family-sized grocery needs, health experts warn that you shouldn’t buy everything in bulk. That’s because you might think you’re saving money in the moment, but you’re actually losing it in the long run. Why? Those gallons of olive oil and 16-packs of canned produce you’re buying will go bad before you ever have the chance to eat them. So, keeping this info in mind, what’s the worst thing you can put in your cart when you’re shopping at the members-only store?
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Fresh Produce
How could you pass up the chance to buy a giant package of lettuce or a bag of avocados for something like just $5? Fresh produce is best eaten...well, fresh-and chances are your fresh produce will lose its nutritional potency or rot before you're able to consume it.
"Costco produce is always sold in bulk," explains Kelsey Pezzuti, MS, RD, retail dietitian and nutrition expert. "The 4lb box of tomatoes may seem like a bargain, but if you don't have a big household, you probably won't use all of them before they start going bad. You can try removing any large pieces of stem and storing the tomatoes stem-side down on a flat surface to buy a few days."
Additionally, a normal family is likely never going to get through the quantity of food that Costco offers, especially for things like fresh produce.
If you live by yourself, opting to buy Costco's 1-pound container of fresh spinach doesn't make sense-even though it's a total steal at under $5! Even when stored properly, fresh spinach doesn't last much longer than a week, and this holds true for other popular fresh produce items such as blueberries, avocados, broccoli and cucumbers.
Unless you gorge yourself on fruits and veggies, you'll end up throwing out the bulk of what you just bought.
On the flip side of things, buying something unhealthy at Costco means "you'll be stuck with ALOT of it, and this can make it tempting to eat it all, even if you shouldn't," warns Heather Hanks, a nutritionist with Life Insurance Star.
This might include something like a Costco-sized supply of Jif peanut butter, which equals two jars (48 oz). "The problem with Jif peanut butter is that it contains sugar, molasses, and partially hydrogenated vegetable oil, which are three inflammatory ingredients that can lead to weight gain, blood sugar problems, hormonal imbalances and more," Heather adds.
The bottom line? Watch what you're buying in bulk, and when it comes to fresh produce, maybe just think through what you need for the week ahead of you.
