Costco flags ramping up Aussie exports

Costco believes it can showcase great Australian food and grocery producers to the world, from oats to beef and honey, as Costco shoppers in Asia increasingly look for ‘made in Australia’.

US supermarket giant Costco Wholesale is tempting Australian food producers from oats and honey to seafood and beef suppliers to use its growing network of stores through Asia to showcase Australian produce, as Costco shoppers in Japan, Korea and China look for ‘made in Australia’ on the shelf.

And there was also opportunities for local food producers to get in front of Costco shoppers in their home market of the US where the powerhouse retail brand generates annual sales of more than $US230bn ($A351bn).

Jody Farrell, Costco Wholesale Australia general merchandise manager, told The Australian’s Global Food Forum that at a recent conference in Japan where Costco executives from around the Asia Pacific region met to discuss strategies and performance that she received strong interest and feedback from other Costco stores eager to stock Australian food and groceries.

“The purpose of the meeting included what the Asia Pacific regions can offer in terms of quality and in Australia we produce superb quality, and our mission at Costco is to provide the best possible quality at the best possible price and we certainly think Australia as a region can do that and really play its part - and a big part - in the APAC region.

“And there is obviously a lot of interest in the region around beef and lamb, but also our bakeries, bakery ingredients, and packaged food such as oats, wine, bath soap is a very popular item around Costco globally.

“Honey is a big product that everyone in the APAC region is very interested in and it comes back to that clean environment in Australia and us being a big producer,“ Ms Farrell said.

Ms Farrell said Costco in Australia, which currently has 14 sites with a 15th to be opened soon in the Gold Coast, was working with Australian food producers to help them adapt processes and products to push into the Costco network both here and overseas to become “champions” to Costco regions around the world.

The 2023 Global Food Forum is in Melbourne.

“So when we are in a global meeting, and we are sitting with our colleagues from Asia or the UK or America, we are championing your products we are very passionate about Australian products and we want to share the quality that is being produced around Australia.

“Quality and value is always going to be what makes a successful item for Costco globally,” she said.

“Our role is to ensure the price we pay is the best possible price and look at ways to streamline our costs. Are we packing things most efficiently? What pallet configuration works the best?”

Currently Costco only has three stores in China but that burgeoning new market represented a huge opportunity for Australian food producers to get their products into stores there and begin to tell their stories to Costco China shoppers.

“They have Australian beef there at the moment, they have Australian oats and those oats are a standard oat but also a value-added oat, so adding some premiumisation, some quality to those oats, adding some Omega-3, proteins … and those opportunities are happening right now in those regions.”

She said that same oats producer was now having conversations with Costco in the US to sell its brand in North American stores.

Ms Farrell said ‘quality’ was the key when it came to food and grocery products sourced from Australia and sold to the rest of the international Costco family, and by far the “most important thing we have to offer”.

Turning to current trading conditions in Australia, Ms Farrell said Costco shoppers were looking for basics, especially food, and were looking to have more occasions with family and friends.

“It‘s definitely a big food market at the moment and our members are coming to shop with us for those basics. Sharing food with their family and friends. A year ago we were selling a lot of exercise equipment and things to do up your home and that has somewhat slowed, but it’s a big food market and food is growing at a rapid rate for us in Australia and globally.