Costco recalls Arctic Zone Titan Pro cooler over choking hazard

A small cooler recall can quickly become a floor-wide scramble when the product is seasonal, cheap and already in members’ cars, garages and vacation bags. Costco pulled the Arctic Zone Titan Pro 40-can cooler from sale after federal safety officials warned that the latch magnet could detach and create a choking hazard with the potential for serious injury or death.

The recall, announced June 11, covered about 2,500 units sold at Costco stores nationwide in March for about $40. The affected product was the Arctic Zone Titan Pro 40-can iceless cooler, item number 1872184, sold in black and brown and made with a zipperless, collapsible design that included a built-in bottle opener, front latch, front insulated compartment, front zippered pocket, mesh side pockets, shoulder strap and grab handles. California Innovations Inc. of Canada imported the coolers, which were manufactured in Vietnam.

For warehouse teams, the real work starts once a headline turns into member traffic. The item has to be pulled from the sales floor, flagged in systems and at the service desk, and checked against back stock, receiving areas and any seasonal displays that might still be holding a few boxes. Front-end staff are the first line of explanation, fielding questions about where to return it, whether a receipt is needed, whether the fix is a refund or a replacement, and what happens if the cooler was already given away or packed for summer travel.

The style number is the key to sorting the affected units from the rest. Arctic Zone said impacted coolers carried style number 10006348 on a sewn-in label inside the front zippered pocket, and that if a different style number sticker was present, the cooler was not affected. Costco’s own recalls page listed the Titan Pro 40 Can Soft Sided Iceless Collapsible Cooler as a recall notice for all U.S. locations, underscoring how far the pull had to reach.

The remedy was a free replacement latch, including shipping, plus instructions and a tool to remove and replace the existing part. No injuries or incidents had been reported as of the notice, but the warning fit a broader pattern the Consumer Product Safety Commission has pressed for years: high-powered magnets can injure children if swallowed, and the federal Safety Standard for Magnets took effect in 2022 to reduce the risk of serious or life-threatening harm. For Costco employees, that turns a $40 cooler into an immediate test of speed, accuracy and patience at the exact moment members want answers now.