See ya, Twinkies
So this time it’s for realz.
Hostess Brands first got us to imagine a world without Twinkies in January, when it filed for bankruptcy protection.
This time the company is liquidating, which I’m sorry to report does not involve a new form of chuggable Twinkie, but rather thousands of lost jobs.
Will you miss Hostess snack cakes? Or do you think, as I do, that snack cakes are no longer the beloved treats they once were.
I’m going to have to cross batter-fried Twinkies off my cooking project bucket list.
On the other hand, if any local bartender wants to invent a cocktail called the Liquidated Twinkie…
- by John Kessler for the Food & More blog
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56 comments Add your comment
FM Fats
November 19th, 2012
1:02 pm
I can’t remember the last time I ate a Hostess or Drakes cake. I had a thing for those Suzy Q’s when I was a kid, though. Nummy nums. How are Tastykakes doing?
Edward
November 20th, 2012
10:24 am
The vulture capitalists make out like bandits, giving their management team 300%+ salary increases and dividend options while cutting the worker’s pay and raping their pension plans. The vultures plan to liquidate was apparent from the beginning, there was never any intention to make the company work, it was a rape and pillage operation from the get-go. Now, 18000+ workers will be out of a job, but the vultures will be rolling in the dough they stole from the workers and pensions. And Twinkies will be made by someone else in a new plant down south that has workers making minimum wages with no pensions or benefits. Yeah, the American dream 2012. And you people are so dumb you think that’s how you build a middle class.
There’s Twinkies in them thar hills! | Food and More with John Kessler
November 21st, 2012
2:01 pm
[...] now, you have all heard about the Hostess liquidation, and that is making some folks go Twinkie crazy. Like Atlantan’s in the bread isle after a snow [...]
Grasshopper
November 22nd, 2012
1:44 pm
Edward, since redstate is too partisan for you, I have something else for you to peruse. It’s virtually the same information quoted in my previous post but from a different source:
“In September, membership of one of its major unions, the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, voted narrowly to accept a new contract with reduced wages and benefits. The Bakers’ union rejected the deal, however, prompting Hostess management to secure permission from a bankruptcy court to force a new concession contract on workers.
The Teamsters union, which represents 6,700 Hostess workers, issued a statement blaming mismanagement by Hostess executives for the company’s problems. But it also was critical of the decision of Bakers’ union, although it did not identify the union by name.
“Unfortunately, the company’s operating and financial problems were so severe that it required steep concessions from a variety of stakeholders but not all stakeholders were willing to be constructive,” said Ken Hall, the Teamsters’ Secretary-Treasurer. “Teamster Hostess members, based on the facts and advice from respected restructuring advisors, understood what was at stake and voted to protect all jobs at Hostess.”
http://money.cnn.com/2012/11/16/news/companies/hostess-closing/index.html
Even the mob bosses at the Teamsters Union saw the writing on the wall.
Grasshopper
November 22nd, 2012
1:49 pm
And Edward, I also noticed that you never cited your quotes as asked so we could examine them objectively. Are sources that hard for you to publicize? Or do you think only one side should do that?
Here is another great take on the situation from July of this year: (Seriously, read this article; there is blame to go around but it seems to me that management tried – they kept Hostess afloat for almost a decade – with their money. Doesn’t that mean that all those union workers were employed 8 more years. Shouldn’t they feel appreciation for not being on the dole for a few years?)
http://management.fortune.cnn.com/2012/07/26/hostess-twinkies-bankrupt/?iid=EL
Who knew Democratic icon Dick Gephardt was deeply involved as was his son. And that one of the real villains came from the 50’s – Multi Employer Pension Plans. Inescapable octopi that are adept at pulling companies under.
The last paragraph from the 7/26 article:
“It’s a miserable state of affairs, even as both sides as recently as mid-July professed optimism that a settlement might be near. But despite the mercy that bankruptcy law permits, perhaps the staggering Hostess zombie in the financial graveyard ought not to be fed anymore. While Hostess may yet come out of bankruptcy again — and Twinkies surely will still be made by somebody regardless — a different conclusion seems right: At long last, Hostess may have reached its ultimate expiration date.”
And Edward, please describe my demographic…I am dying to hear that!
Nikki
November 23rd, 2012
11:01 am
I worked for a government union back in the early 80’s and I can tell you what happens. First off, a government union cannot strike, which reduces your bargaining power. The only thing it did was create an atmosphere of mistrust and tension. It took working relationships and divided them, union versus no-union. After 1 year of dealing with this, I finally quit. Of course I was pregnant when I quit but the point was I was so sick and tired of the stress that I took the first opportunity to quit. The sticking point was when I requested leave to go out of state for a family wedding and was denied because another person had requested the same day off. She just happened to be the pet of the supervisor and never mentioned being off the same weekend until after I had put in my request. HMMM?