Costco’s iconic $5 rotisserie chicken — a staple as familiar as the warehouse’s concrete floors — is now at the center of a proposed class action lawsuit that claims the retail giant misled shoppers about what’s inside the plastic dome.
Filed Thursday in San Diego, the lawsuit accuses Costco of falsely advertising its Kirkland Signature $5 rotisserie chicken as free of preservatives, when, according to the plaintiffs, the product contains ingredients that function exactly as that.
Plaintiffs Challenge Marketing Claims
The Costco $5 rotisserie chicken lawsuit was brought by Anatasia Chernov of Escondido and Bianca Johnston of Big Bear, who argue that Costco’s in-store signage and website give consumers a clear — and allegedly false — message.
According to the complaint, Costco’s marketing materials “create an overall net impression” that the rotisserie chicken contains no added preservatives, a claim the plaintiffs say does not match the product’s actual ingredients.
Allegations Focus on Ingredients and Disclosure
Sodium Phosphate and Carrageenan at Issue
The lawsuit alleges the chicken includes two added preservatives: sodium phosphate and carrageenan. These substances, the filing states, function as preservatives and directly undermine Costco’s prominent “No Preservatives” representations.
“The presence of sodium phosphate and carrageenan, added preservatives which function as such in the Rotisserie Chicken, contradict the overall net impression that Costco’s ‘No Preservatives’ advertising creates,” the lawsuit says.
