Kirkland Signature · Dairy

Who makes Kirkland Signature Cream Cheese (8 oz bricks, 6-count)?

Probable Strong but indirect evidence

Evidence points to

Schreiber Foods

Citable fact

As of August 10, 2026, evidence points to Schreiber Foods as the manufacturer of Kirkland Signature Cream Cheese (8 oz bricks, 6-count), but no tier 1–3 source names the link directly.

Verified August 10, 2026

The common claim vs. the evidence

What’s commonly claimed, and what the evidence supports

Top answers contradict each other. Roundup articles variously name Kraft Heinz, 'Lactalis American Group,' Schreiber Foods, or Franklin Foods, and the Lactalis version conflates Kraft Heinz's 2021 sale of its natural-cheese business to Lactalis (a deal that excluded the Philadelphia cream-cheese brand, which Kraft Heinz kept), so it does not even describe cream cheese. The Schreiber answer, long a bare guess, now has evidence behind it: as of August 2026, Costco's own product-listing data for the US 6-count item carries 'SCHREIBER FOODS INC' in its manufacturer field, so evidence points to Schreiber Foods, the second-largest U.S. cream-cheese producer and dominant private-label co-packer, whose Green Bay, Wisconsin base matches the label's Wisconsin-milk claim. No editorial or regulatory source yet corroborates the link, which is why the attribution is probable rather than confirmed.

The sources

Evidence & sources

Each source is graded on the six-tier evidence rubric, where tier 1 is strongest. Sources are archived, so a citation still works if the original page moves or goes behind a paywall.

Tier 4 Costco Wholesale Kirkland Signature Cream Cheese, 8 oz, 6 ct (Costco Business Delivery product-listing data) Published · accessed August 10, 2026

Costco's Business Delivery site serves the US item (#2001135810, 6 x 8 oz) and embeds catalog JSON whose manufacturer field names the finished-product maker: both item records with shortDescription 'Kirkland Signature Cream Cheese, 8 oz, 6 ct' carry 'SCHREIBER FOODS INC' in that field, reproduced at two URL forms of the same product page and verified present in the archived snapshot. This is the field that named diapers -> FIRST QUALITY and batteries -> DURACELL; costco.com itself blocks automated access, but costcobusinessdelivery.com serves the same catalog data. The value passes the sanity check: Schreiber Foods (Green Bay, WI) is the second-largest US cream-cheese producer and the dominant private-label co-packer, consistent with the label's Wisconsin-milk claim, and it absorbed cream-cheese specialist Franklin Foods' US business from Hochland at the end of 2025. Graded probable rather than confirmed because the internal catalog field is the sole route: no editorial, regulatory, or on-label source independently names the link, and the field can reflect a vendor of record rather than the plant. Prior sweeps (documented 2026-07-06): zero FDA recalls of Kirkland cream cheese ever; no CourtListener/RECAP filing names a co-packer; Schreiber's own June 2024 cream-cheese-spread recall (F-1289 through F-1296-2024) covered Dunkin and Essential Everyday but not Kirkland.

Archived snapshot ↗ Original ↗

Frequently asked

Who makes Kirkland Signature cream cheese?

Evidence points to Schreiber Foods, per Costco's own product-listing data: the Costco Business Delivery page for the 6-count bricks (US item #2001135810) carries 'SCHREIBER FOODS INC' in its manufacturer field, as of August 2026. Costco does not editorially disclose the maker and no independent source corroborates the link, so the attribution is probable rather than confirmed. The label states only that the product is distributed by Costco Wholesale and made in the USA from Wisconsin milk, consistent with Green Bay, Wisconsin-based Schreiber, the second-largest U.S. cream-cheese producer and dominant private-label co-packer.

Is Kirkland cream cheese the same as Philadelphia?

The evidence indicates it is not. Philadelphia is a Kraft Heinz product. Kraft Heinz kept the Philadelphia cream-cheese brand when it sold its natural-cheese business to Lactalis in 2021, so the online claim that 'Lactalis makes Kirkland cheese' does not apply to cream cheese even if it were sourced. Meanwhile, Costco's own product-listing data points to Schreiber Foods for the Kirkland bricks. The two are frequently compared on price and texture, but the evidence on file gives them different makers.

Is Kirkland cream cheese made by Schreiber Foods or Franklin Foods?

The evidence points to Schreiber Foods. Costco's product-listing data for the Kirkland 6-count item names 'SCHREIBER FOODS INC' in its manufacturer field, the first tier 1-5 source connecting either company to the Kirkland bricks. Franklin Foods, the longtime U.S. cream-cheese specialist that also circulated as a guess, exited the U.S. market at the end of 2025 when its owner Hochland sold the business to Schreiber, so even a Franklin attribution would now resolve to Schreiber. The link rests on Costco's internal catalog field alone, so it is graded probable, not confirmed.

Has Kirkland cream cheese ever been recalled?

No. FDA's enforcement database contains no recall of any Kirkland cream cheese as of August 2026. That matters here because the recall route is what identified the maker of Kirkland butter (a 2024 FDA recall named Continental Dairy Facilities Southwest), so the absence of any Kirkland cream-cheese recall means that highest-yield route produces no co-packer. Schreiber Foods' own June 2024 cream-cheese-spread recall covered store brands such as Dunkin and Essential Everyday, but not Kirkland.

Prefer the name brand? Philadelphia Original Cream Cheese The closest name-brand equivalent to this Kirkland Signature product.

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