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
joe
November 16th, 2012
12:55 pm
Don’t eat them…packed full of lard, fat and preservatives. Funny, Twinkies reportedly can survive a nuclear war, but can’t survive their unions…
chest fevery
November 16th, 2012
1:02 pm
There hasn’t been a good Twinkie since 1962.
donkey200
November 16th, 2012
1:29 pm
that’s what the unions get and deserve.
Jimmy H
November 16th, 2012
1:54 pm
Great victory for the labor unions…..not willing to work with management to restructure resulting in everyone at Hostess losing their jobs…….too bad the President couldn’t step in and use taxpayer money to save the Twinkee industry!
punk
November 16th, 2012
2:04 pm
Remember as a kid touring the Wonder Bread bakery in Richmond, Va and getting those mini loaves of bread as a sample. To die for. Thanks unions. The animals are running the zoo.
Josh
November 16th, 2012
2:26 pm
I hope everyone realizes that the company will be quickly purchased and that Twinkies will not be going anywhere.
Kramer
November 16th, 2012
2:38 pm
Josh, you may be right but the new owner will not allow the unions to drive the bus. They will either negotiate in kind or they will close the plants and open under non-union workers. Hope that happens.
Sorry, Josh...
November 16th, 2012
2:43 pm
…but the company WILL NOT be quickly purchased, as it can’t since they are doing a legal thing called “liquidating”. Now, the different BRANDS (Twinkie, Wonder Bread, Ho-Ho’s, etc) may be sold to the highest bidder as part of the LIQUIDATION, but the company as a whole will no longer exist.
Please go back and review Business Law 101…
Josh
November 16th, 2012
3:12 pm
Yes, the intellectual property that is needed to continue to produce Twinkies and other products will be quickly sold and purchased. The new producers of Twinkies will not be called Hostess — you are correct. My main point that Twinkies are not going to become a thing of the past still stands.
Anton Chigurh
November 16th, 2012
3:45 pm
Twinkies are terrible.
Grasshopper
November 16th, 2012
3:46 pm
“My main point that Twinkies are not going to become a thing of the past still stands.”
Only the dumb, mob-led union workers will be a thing of the past.
Old timer
November 16th, 2012
3:53 pm
Found anew one for the season…Twinkie pumpkin delight……just might have to make it.
Old timer
November 16th, 2012
3:54 pm
And several companies were ruined by unions…EasternAirlines for one.
Theresa
November 16th, 2012
4:26 pm
Good riddance! I think they’re nasty.
SAWB
November 16th, 2012
4:56 pm
The sad thing is many of the long term employees apparently wanted to accept the concessions and try to save the company and their jobs. However, the Union and many of the newer employees decided to strike. It seems many were planning to leave anyway, so forcing the company to close made it easier for them to receive unemployment and other Government support.
Na
November 16th, 2012
5:07 pm
The company was having problems with overhead/ expenses, The new Obamacare was going to finish them off if the Obama backed unions did not. You can chalk this closing and the loss of all these jobs to the election of Obama and his new socialist style government
Steve
November 16th, 2012
5:24 pm
The new Twinkies could very well be called Hostess Twinkies. The Hostess name is an asset to be sod like everything else.
COrey
November 16th, 2012
5:32 pm
Glad those union people will be without jobs.
sansho1
November 16th, 2012
5:43 pm
Ya’ll save some venom for management, why don’t you:
“BCTGM members are well aware that as the company was preparing to file for bankruptcy earlier this year, the then CEO of Hostess was awarded a 300 percent raise (from approximately $750,000 to $2,550,000) and at least nine other top executives of the company received massive pay raises. One such executive received a pay increase from $500,000 to $900,000 and another received one taking his salary from $375,000 to $656,256.”
Cash in, dip out, blame the union. Looks like the head honchos knew where the company was headed well before negotiations with workers were even attempted, and got while the getting was good.
COrey
November 16th, 2012
5:47 pm
So what. Why be in business if you can’t make a profit. Glad the union people will be without jobs.
Judge Smails
November 16th, 2012
5:59 pm
Unions have long since served their usefullness. Now they are just a hangout for the lazy, slow-moving class.
Yes…That means you! You know who you are!
sansho1
November 16th, 2012
6:48 pm
That’s not profit, that’s compensation. Do you understand the difference? Compensation is what the labor negotiations were about — an 8% pay cut and a 30% cut in benefits, AFTER management awarded themselves gargantuan pay raises while preparing to file for bankruptcy.
twinkhole
November 16th, 2012
8:03 pm
Who eats twinkies anyway.Woody harrelson?
wayne
November 17th, 2012
12:15 am
john,
reading in between the lines it sounds like you are upset that the hostess employees lost their jobs. Do you think that there is anyone else to blame but themselves for losing their jobs? By the tone of your article you are getting political so go ahead and answer my question.
Beck
November 17th, 2012
8:15 am
So it’s okay for the execs to “cash out” and turn a “profit” or have “compensation”…
…but the employees who work for them can’t earn decent wages, or have a union to represent them in this pursuit?
sansho1
November 17th, 2012
8:23 am
Give it up, Beck. They understand nothing beyond whose side they’re on.
Edward
November 17th, 2012
10:31 am
“Hostess management had already claimed that the strike would be responsible for the closings of specific plants—when it had already planned to close plants even if the workers accepted the cuts and stayed at work. BCTGM President Frank Hurt says the workers understood who they were dealing with:
Our members know that the plans all along of the Wall Street investors currently in control of this company did not include the operation of Hostess Brands any longer than it takes to sell the company in whole—or in part—in a way that will maximize the profits of these vulture capitalists regardless of the impact on the workforce.
Workers were being asked to accept cuts, but top executives had gotten massive raises as Hostess was about to enter bankruptcy. Investments in the company’s future that had been promised as part of restructuring after the previous bankruptcy were never made. And as for the management, put in place by the private equity companies that now own Hostess, Hurt says:
Unfortunately however, for the past eight years management of the company has been in the hands of Wall Street investors, “restructuring experts”, third-tier managers from other non-baking food companies and currently a “liquidation specialist”. Six CEO’s in eight years, none of whom with any bread and cake baking industry experience, was the prescription for failure.”
Grasshopper
November 17th, 2012
10:42 am
The Bakery Union is run by the Teamsters, the most corrupt, mob-controlled, union organization ever to exist. Quit pretending the Union is pure as the driven snow and understand whose side YOU are on.
Art
November 17th, 2012
11:04 am
Don’t eat Twinkies so much but still liked Wonder Bread. As to the business side of this, I think this is just a portent of things to come. More and more are getting in the wagon while fewer and fewer are pulling it and now they want those of us who are pulling, to pull harder.
butch
November 17th, 2012
12:06 pm
i was in plumbers union ( politics & greed )
Edward
November 17th, 2012
12:15 pm
Grasshopper: trying to place all the blame on the unions is disingenuous, as well. There is enough blame to go around, but the glaring “in your face” action was done by the management. It was clear they were going to liquidate regardless of any concessions from the unions. This is a prime example of greed replacing what used to be good American values.
Ned Ludd
November 17th, 2012
12:45 pm
News Flash—It ain’t just about Unions and Twinkies people! It’s also about zingers, raspberry zingers,yodels,susy-q’s.ho-ho’s,ding dongs and Hostess Fruit pies—That’s right! no more fruit pies folks! Where we gonna get’em? Anybody else worried about Twinkie The Kid? –He ain’t exactly a spring sponge cake–gonna be real tough to get a job. Maybe he can write a book–I’ll bet he has seen plenty, you know, working that close to Dolly Madison–(wink,wink)
AzCat
November 17th, 2012
7:47 pm
Ned, that was funny.
Grasshopper
November 18th, 2012
7:50 am
“With Hostess brands’ corporate corpse not even cold yet due to the nationwide union strike, the AFL-CIO’s Trumka issued a statement on Friday blaming Wall Street for the company’s crash. The problem with Trumka’s lie-filled logic is that Wall Street didn’t call the strike and Trumka fails to address the fact that without Wall Street investors investing in Hostess, the company, would have likely died years ago.
Even more important, however, is the fact that, although they didn’t like it, the International Brotherhood of Teamsters (with 6700 members’ jobs on the line) approved the same concessionary contract that Hostess was seeking of the bakers’ union.
Though Teamster bosses are now trying to blame Hostess for its demise, late last week, the Teamsters had called on the bakery union to allow its members to vote, even going so far as to chastise the bakery union’s actions. However, as much as he and his fellow union bosses try to spin and finger point the results of the union’s actions that destroyed the Ding Dongs, in a Friday statement, bakery union boss Frank Hurt admits that his union members knew that their strike could kill Hostess.
And, now, no matter how union bosses try to spin it, 18,000 Hostess workers–with their dignity, justice and respect intact–are now destined to stand with their hands out in the unemployment line.”
http://www.redstate.com/2012/11/17/as-union-bosses-spin-twinkies-demise-bakers-union-boss-admits-union-knew-hostess-would-die/
david c
November 18th, 2012
8:05 am
Just a quick note. During the restructuring and re-negotiating phase, Hostess management gave themselves 7.6 million dollars in bonuses for mismanaging the company.
yogo
November 18th, 2012
8:47 am
Jobless after 34 years delivering twinkies and wonder bread I can tell you first hand this was going to happend in the near future anyway, This was the hedge funds, who own us,A way to blame it on the unions. The bottom line is sales are way down and continue to decline
Edward
November 18th, 2012
9:11 am
LOL, quoting redstate.com? Yeah, that’s real objective (NOT!). Sorry dude, but FOLLOW THE MONEY. Look who made out like bandits, it wasn’t the unions or the workers, I’ll tell you that. FOLLOW THE MONEY.
Grasshopper
November 18th, 2012
9:45 am
And who were you quoting? Let’s check the objectivity of your sources.
Facts are facts, regardless of source.
Paddy
November 18th, 2012
10:02 am
BECK………the workers did have union representation, just not good representation. I feel sorry for the workers. They sure had a different take on the company closing 2days after it came true, than 2 days prior.
Franklin
November 18th, 2012
11:21 am
Regardless of whose fault it was (always the other person), Unions have no place in society any more. People are losing jobs left and right, and with Obama getting re-elected many owners have already started laying off, cutting hours, etc. So the union people lost their jobs. Look around, so many others have as well, and they didn’t get any union benefits to begin with.
Ramona Clef
November 18th, 2012
11:35 am
People’s tastes and eating habits have changed some over the last three generations. Might that be more of a problem than labor relations?
Edward
November 18th, 2012
12:57 pm
Open your damn eyes, follow the money! The management cashed out days before the bankruptcy, they were going to liquidate regardless of what the unions did. They increased their salaries HUNDREDS of percents while claiming there was no money for the workers or pensions. This is a prime example of vulture capitalists at work. And some of you people are too stupid to realize what is right in front of your nose, your screwed up definitions and allegiance to a ruling class have you completely bamboozled. It isn’t Obama wrecking your life, it is the people you are worshiping who suck every penny out of you then convince you it is someone else doing it. Holy S, y’all are dumb.
Edward
November 18th, 2012
12:58 pm
Oh, and grasshopper, you didn’t quote any facts, only supposition from redstate.com. I don’t expect anyone from your demographic to understand the difference between facts and bulls***, though.
atlmom
November 18th, 2012
1:15 pm
Perhaps the ‘best’ managers don’t take jobs working with unions. Perhaps the ‘best’ managers won’t work for companies that have unions – and well, then we see what happens.
It is not unusual for a company that is anticipating bankruptcy to give ‘new’ contracts to a select few – to force them to stay for a period of time. Seeing those numbers regarding ‘pay raises’ leads me to believe that that is what hostess was doing for a few select employees – so they don’t jump ship when they can leave (because, well, the best would be able to leave) – because they need some employees around to help out even if they are going to be liquidating.
Blow
November 18th, 2012
3:42 pm
Edward, Obama IS wrecking my life by making me pay more for his stupid Obamacare plus having me work fewer hours so my boss can afford to stay open and even keep me on the payroll. But nobody here is blaming Obama for this Twinkie mess. atlmom is right – the bog honchos would have got out while the gettin’ was good and left the company in an even bigger mess than they became. Shareholders voted on the raises. You say that the company was planning to liquidate before the unions striked. Maybe so – but the FACT is that the unions should have been dissolved years ago, the company should not have had to put up with union regulations for years, and the strike was just the straw that broke the camels back. Years of having to put up with unions and their stupid rules (having 3 people there to do the work of one person, where in non-union companies many are complaining of one employee having to do the work of 3 or 4 people, and surely don’t get union wages) is one of the reasons for the demise. People not eating so much junk food is another. But you CAN NOT just blame the managers and believe the unions are blameless.
Narwanna
November 18th, 2012
6:11 pm
The employees caused their own problem in the end. Ppl need jobs. Take the cuts take a step back and you could have kept your jobs. It sucks ppl need to grow up.
Edward
November 18th, 2012
6:30 pm
You people are so blind and dumb. You deserve to lose.
Ned Ludd
November 18th, 2012
7:22 pm
http://grouchymuffin.files.wordpress.com/2012/01/twinkie-the-kid.jpg
Wow-I thought they would just fire him—RIP Twinky, This world wasn’t meant for one as tastyful as you!
Clay
November 18th, 2012
8:00 pm
What is this world coming to nowadays?
We lose our beloved Twinkies forever, but we get another four years of Captain Teleprompter.
RIP, America.
Marsh
November 19th, 2012
9:04 am
I feel for you, Edward and sansho1. The stupid here is strong.
redstate.com has facts? HAHAHA. Hilarious.
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?