Costco produces hamburger for all their stores at their meat plant in Tracy, Calif. 05212012 KEITH MYERS/The Kansas City Star
Costco produces hamburger, franks and seasoned meatballs for all their stores at their meat plant in Tracy, Calif., where chilled beef arrives on pallets from other meat packers. They do not slaughter animals at this facility. Assistant vice president Kevin Smith talked about their quality control procedures in May.
Workers, including Chu Yang (center), in the testing laboratory at Costco's hamburger plant in Tracy, Calif., use flame to sterilize knives as they check beef samples for pathogens.
Because of low supplies of organic beef in the U.S., Costco imports frozen blocks of the beef from Australia at their hamburger plant in Tracy, Calif.
The Costco meat plant in Tracy, Calif., does not slaughter animals. It receives cuts of beef from outside suppliers that arrive in plastic lined tubs on pallets. The plant produces hamburgers, franks and seasoned meatballs for Costco stores across the country.
Costco produces hamburger for all their stores at their meat plant in Tracy, Calif. The facility does not slaughter animals but instead uses cuts of beef shipped in tubs from other suppliers.
Mike Caccam performed bacteria counts in May on samples in the testing laboratory of Costco's hamburger plant in Tracy, Calif.
Beef samples are prepared for testing in the laboratory at the Costco hamburger plant in Tracy, Calif.
Costco produces hamburger for all their stores at a meat plant in Tracy, Calif.
Organic ground beef comes off the line ready for packaging at the Costco beef plant in Tracy, Calif.
Costco produces hamburger for all their stores at a meat plant in Tracy, Calif. Hamburgers are flash frozen as they move through the plant.
Costco produces hamburger for all their stores at their meat plant in Tracy, Calif. Workers boxed tubes of hamburger in May.
Costco produces hamburger for all their stores at their meat plant in Tracy, Calif.