Where Does Costco Source Its Kirkland Signature Vanilla Ice Cream?

Anyone who's tried Costco's Kirkland Signature vanilla ice cream knows that it's the real deal — creamy, dreamy, subtly sweet, and perfect for either licking by the spoonful or using as the base for sundaes or milkshakes. Like so many of Costco's house brands, its vanilla ice cream is sourced from a third party. The brand behind Kirkland vodka, for instance, is a French distillery. While some of these associations are hush-hush, Costco is loud and proud about the provenance of its ice cream: a modest dairy co-op in California called Humboldt Creamery.

Vanilla may get a bad rep for being the "basic" flavor of the bunch, but any ice cream connoisseur knows that a well-made, rich vanilla can't be beat. Vanilla ice cream became popular in the United States thanks to Thomas Jefferson, who had the dessert made the right way with a whole vanilla bean. Costco's vanilla ice cream has won rave reviews, with some calling it the best they have ever had. Humboldt Creamery is to thank for the fact that Costco's Kirkland ice cream is thick, luscious, and priced right, at less than 20 dollars for two half-gallon containers (depending on your local store's prices, of course). This small dairy currently makes all Costco's vanilla ice cream for stores throughout the United States.

A lot more goes into making good ice cream than you might imagine. True to the name, ice cream is made with cream, which makes the real difference between it and gelato. As such, the quality of the dairy components that go into ice cream determine its end result. And Humboldt Creamery is dedicated to high-quality ingredients when making ice cream. All its milk is organic and hormone-free, and its dairy cows are grass-fed and free-range. Ice cream makes up a full 70% of its output.

It's no surprise, then, that Costco ice cream has been awarded the "super premium" distinction, which is given to ice creams with significantly less air whipped into the cream and a high butterfat content. This leads to ice cream that is dense and rich, with a thick mouthfeel.

Rich Ghilarducci, CEO of Humboldt Creamery, told the North Coast Journal that Costco finds the flavor of the California dairy's products to be "something very special," and that the company stated that it wants all its ice cream to be sourced from Humboldt County. In fact, even the ice cream in the treats for sale in Costco's food courts is partially-sourced from Humboldt: they provide the milk-and-sugar mix, and the ice cream is made elsewhere.