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Kirkland Signature: Facts, Recalls & Verified Foods
Kirkland Signature is made by Costco Wholesale Corporation — it scores green on 0 of 5 WSAVA-aligned criteria we track (1 red, 4 undisclosed), 2 FDA recalls on record, and 0 of the 3 Kirkland Signature foods we've verified carry an AAFCO feeding-trial statement.
· 3 Kirkland Signature food labels checked
The scorecard
WSAVA-aligned criteria
The World Small Animal Veterinary Association's nutrition guidelines suggest questions to ask any pet food maker before you buy. Here are this brand's answers, each with its source, or marked undisclosed when we could not confirm one.
0 of 5 criteria confirmed yes · 1 confirmed no · 4 undisclosed. Undisclosed is common, especially for smaller brands — it means we couldn't confirm an answer from a public source, not that the answer is unfavorable.
We could not confirm this from a public source.
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Private label: Costco owns the label but no plants; Kirkland Signature dog food is co-manufactured by Diamond Pet Foods (corroborated by dogfoodadvisor.com, which states 'Kirkland Signature pet food is made by Diamond Pet Foods').
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No feeding-trial AAFCO statement found on the 3 labels we’ve verified for this brand, and no company-wide claim was found either. Most pet foods are only "formulated to meet" AAFCO profiles (a paper calculation) rather than fed to real animals in trials — this is common, not necessarily a red flag.
Label owner (retailer private label) publishes no QC process that we found. The maker is named as Diamond Pet Foods only by third-party sources, so Diamond's QC page is not credited to this label.
PubMed lists no animal or pet paper with Costco (label owner) in an author address. Not proof no research exists — only that none is indexed under that company name.
source
These five checks come from WSAVA's guidelines on selecting pet foods — not our own opinion score. WSAVA does not approve or list brands. See how all 50 brands we track answer WSAVA's questions → · Our methodology →
The company
Who makes Kirkland Signature
Ownership and history, each sourced independently — private-label and co-packed brands often hide the actual manufacturer behind the name on the bag.
Parent company
Costco Wholesale Corporation
source
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Founded
Not publicly confirmed
source
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Headquarters
Not publicly confirmed
source
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The cost
What Kirkland Signature costs, against everything else we have priced
The median Kirkland Signature dry food we have priced works out at $1.17 per 1,000 kcal, against $2.17 for the median dry food we have priced — so it sits about 1.8x below the market. Cost per 1,000 kcal is the only basis that survives different bag sizes and moisture levels; per pound this comparison would mean nothing. On composition the gap is usually smaller than the price gap implies: 30.0% dry-matter protein against a median of 32.2%.
Kirkland Signature foods by cost per 1,000 kcal
| Food | Form | Protein (DM) | Cost / 1,000 kcal | Buy |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kirkland Signature Adult Formula Chicken, Rice and Vegetable Dog Food | dry | 28.9% | $1.17 | Check price |
What Kirkland Signature actually puts in its food
The ingredients this brand reaches for most across its 3 verified foods, counted once per recipe. Each links to what the ingredient is, what the evidence says, and how common it is industry-wide.
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Named Meat/Poultry Meal (e.g., Chicken Meal, Lamb Meal)
In 3 of 3 Kirkland Signature foods (100%).
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Mixed tocopherols (natural vitamin E)
In 3 of 3 Kirkland Signature foods (100%).
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Beet Pulp
In 3 of 3 Kirkland Signature foods (100%).
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Potato
In 3 of 3 Kirkland Signature foods (100%).
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Flaxseed (ALA omega-3)
In 3 of 3 Kirkland Signature foods (100%).
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Peas
In 3 of 3 Kirkland Signature foods (100%).
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Prebiotics (chicory root / inulin, FOS)
In 3 of 3 Kirkland Signature foods (100%).
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Probiotics (live microbials)
In 3 of 3 Kirkland Signature foods (100%).
The safety record
FDA recall history
From the FDA's Animal & Veterinary recall list, last checked 2026-10-19, plus older FDA notices we added by hand. Kirkland Signature recall page →
Kirkland Signature Super Premium dog and cat foods (Adult Dog Lamb, Rice & Vegetable; Adult Dog Chicken, Rice & Vegetable; Mature Dog Chicken, Rice & Egg; Healthy Weight Dog; Maintenance Cat; Healthy Weight Cat) and Kirkland Signature Nature's Domain Salmon Meal & Sweet Potato for Dogs (best-before Dec 9, 2012 - Jan 31, 2013)
Potential Salmonella contamination at the Gaston, SC plant; the plant's output was linked to a multistate outbreak of human Salmonella Infantis infections
Kirkland Signature Premium Dog 2-Flavor Variety Pack canned dog food, 14 oz (24-pack), listed on the American Nutrition recall
Melamine in rice protein concentrate
The FDA's online recall list is complete for recent years but leaves out many notices from before about 2023. We add older FDA recall notices by hand when we find them.
The labels
What we've verified from Kirkland Signature's labels
Computed directly from the official-label data we've extracted for this brand — never estimated.
Foods verified
3
3 dog
Feeding-trial validated
0
of 3 (0%)
Formulated to meet
3
AAFCO paper calculation
Label transparency
62%
avg. fields disclosed
The foods
Foods from Kirkland Signature we've verified
Every one links to its own Verified Label — guaranteed analysis, AAFCO statement, and (where priced) cost per day.