These Costco Shoppers Are 'Never Buying' Kirkland Oat Milk Again. Here's Why

Costco has a legion of dedicated customers who shop the warehouse superstore for all kinds of bulk and other goods, many of which are from the store-branded Kirkland Signature products. These are more than just a cheaper knockoff brand. In fact, in some cases, customers actually prefer Kirkland brand products over their name-brand versions. That said, not every item is a hit with a cult following, and in the case of oat milk, there's a group of Costco shoppers who are "never buying" Kirkland oat milk ever again, and here's the reason why.

On a Reddit thread on espresso, a poster noted that due to a recent formula change and the removal of an emulsifier, the Kirkland oat milk no longer froths. Several commenters also noted recent difficulties using the oat milk in their coffee, with one noting that "this was my main use of the Kirkland oat milk. Never buying that again, I guess". The sentiments were echoed on another Reddit Costco thread, with coffee drinkers expressing their disappointment at the formula change, as they can no longer add froth to their coffees. This is completely understandable, especially since we listed the oat milk as one of the best Kirkland products to transform your morning coffee.

Coffee drinkers also took to the Costco product page for the Kirkland oat milk to express their unhappiness with the new formula, which garnered numerous one-star reviews. Several stated that they will no longer buy the oat milk, or will not buy more unless they change the formula. One even plans to return the existing boxes they bought with the new formula (taking advantage of Costco's generous and hassle-free return policy).

Other complaints about the new oat milk include that it tastes like cardboard, seems to be watered down, curdles, separates, and goes bad faster than it used to. Some customers also take issue with the addition of canola or sunflower oil and the new formulation which adds gellan gum (a gelling agent similar to xanthan or guar gum and often used as a plant-based alternative to gelatin). Others dislike the added sugar — even though a large amount of the sugar (or glucose) content is due to the way oat milk is produced, which breaks down starches into sugars (a scientific reason some people are calling oat milk a scam).

Despite the many complains, Kirkland oat milk still has fans, whose reasons for liking the product include that it's affordable, organic, shelf stable, ideal "for dunking a cookie," in smoothies, and for those who can't have dairy.