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Hey Costco: It’s Time to Get Toxic Chemicals Off Your Shelves

Hey Costco It's Time to Get Toxic Chemicals Off Your Shelves Groovy Green LivinWhen I joined Costco a few years ago their organic selection was limited so I opted for other markets for the bulk of my shopping. Fast forward to the present and Costco is now taking the lead as the largest organic retailer [1] in the United States. In 2015 they sold $4 billion [2] of organic produce and packaged foods.

Costco it’s time to get toxic chemicals off your shelves

While Costco has become a leader in carrying organic produce and adhering to fair wages, they have a problem that needs to be addressed. Some of the products on the shelves in their stores contain harmful chemicals. I’m talking about chemicals like cancer-causing, hormone-disrupting flame retardants, some of which show up in toddlers at five times the rate of their mothers.

Safer Chemicals Healthy Families released a report called Who’s Minding the Store? — A Report Card on Retailer Actions to Eliminate Toxic Chemicals [3]“. This report gave large retailers a letter grade for actions they’ve taken to eliminate toxic chemicals. Costco received the second lowest grade of any retailer evaluated, receiving only 9.5 points and a letter grade of F. The company has no public written safer chemicals policy in place, unlike many of their competitors. Costco was surprisingly the only major retailer that did not publicly report any progress in getting rid of chemicals of high concern over the past three years.

Costco has made some progress since the report [4]was published by recently updating its website [5]. The site describes the development and implementation of a Costco Restricted Chemical List (RSL) and Smart Screening Program for toxic chemicals.

While this is a step in the right direction, they still have some work to do.

Joining Costco again

I let my Costco membership lapse a few years ago and have been contemplating joining again. The store is a 15-minute drive from my house so it’s not convenient, but I’m drawn to their commitment to organic products. My decision would be much easier if they also committed to reducing toxic chemicals in products they sell. Not only would they be a leader in selling organic products, but they would pave the way for other retailers to eliminate harmful chemicals from their products. The time has come for Costco to take the next step and announce a robust safer chemicals policy with clear benchmarks and timeframes to reduce and eliminate toxic chemicals in products on the shelves in their stores.

Here’s how you can help:

  1. Go to the store and fill out a comment card.
    Next time you are at Costco, fill out a comment card voicing your concerns. Costco comment cards may be available in stores near the customer service desk. Or you can print a card HERE [6], fill it out at home, and drop it off at a nearby Costco.
  2. Make an electronic comment.
    Take action online [7] and submit a digital comment to Costco.
  3. Call the customer line.
    Dial the customer support line and express your concerns with a Costco customer service agent: 1-800-774-2678

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