What will happen to Hostess and its beloved products?

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AI Thread Summary
Hostess has filed for bankruptcy, but Twinkies will continue to be produced for now, alleviating concerns for fans of the iconic snack. The discussion highlights nostalgia for Hostess products, with many participants sharing their favorite treats and memories associated with them. There is speculation about the future of Hostess brands, with some expressing hope that they may resurface under new ownership. Additionally, the conversation touches on the impact of a bakers' strike on production and the potential liquidation of unsold inventory. Overall, the sentiment reflects a mix of concern and nostalgia for the beloved Hostess snacks.
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Fortunately, no. Twinkies junkies will still get their fix, at least for now, even though Hostess has filed for bankruptcy:

Twinkies will keep coming despite bankruptcy

I was actually more of a fan of Hostess Cupcakes than Twinkies, but I haven't eaten either in a long time. My current junk-food addiction is Cheetos. :-p
 
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Even if they went bankrupt people would save them just to see how long they last. Someone should try irradiating one and putting it in air-tight container to get into the Guinness Book of Records for the oldest surviving Twinkie. Who knows, some Twinkies could outlast humanity.
 
I never knew that Hostess cupcakes have been around so long.

[introduced in] 1919
Hostess CupCakes® are the best selling snack cakes in history. It wasn’t until over 30 years later that baker Doc Rice added the signature 7 squiggles and vanilla-crème filling. Varieties now include Golden, Orange and Strawberry.Throughout the '60s and '70s Captain Cupcake was the mascot shown on the Hostess CupCake packaging, but today Hostess uses a character named 'Curly.
http://www.hostessbrands.com/Brands/Hostess.aspx
 
I haven't had a Twinkie or anything else Hostess in a long time. I was mostly a HoHo fan...and Devil Dogs, but I can't remember if they were made by Hostess or not.
 
I knew it was a matter of time before someone posted this, thanks JT, my only thoughts about Hostess is they made treats that brings back good childhood memories, sad to see them disappear into oblivion. I still have my memories though.

Rhody... :frown:
 
The only thing made by hostess that I eat is their orange cupcakes, which are almost impossible to find. Whenever I find them, I buy the entire stock, which is usually only 2 packs. :frown: I even have a certain way they must be eaten. These are not to be taken lightly.
 
jtbell said:
... Hostess has filed for bankruptcy ...
I'm shocked! What has the world come to that an American manufacturer of sugary treats might go out of business? Is nothing sacred?

Not long ago, the production of the vaunted (but, apparently not that much) Brach's A&W root beer barrel was stopped. Being somewhat addicted to said treats, I was most distressed by their discontinuance.

And now the possibility that the cream-filled (chocolate) Hostess cupcake might become an extinct species. (I prefer them to Twinkies -- apparently having been persuaded by the advertising spiel of Buffalo Bob and Howdy Doody.) This is a bad thing.
 
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I forgot the Hostess Suzy Q (chocolate version). Perhaps the greatest sugary snack ever invented, and my current favorite inducer of adult onset diabetes. I'm not there yet, but I'm working on it.
 
Ivan Seeking said:
I never knew that Hostess cupcakes have been around so long.


http://www.hostessbrands.com/Brands/Hostess.aspx

I'm sure the original Hostess cupcakes have also been around for that long. Those things never get stale. :D
 
  • #10
Moonbear said:
I haven't had a Twinkie or anything else Hostess in a long time. I was mostly a HoHo fan...and Devil Dogs, but I can't remember if they were made by Hostess or not.

Devil Dogs are made by Drake, which is owned by Hostess now.

I never understood why some people favored Ho-Hos over Ding-Dongs and vice versa.
 
  • #11
Defense lawyers would never let Twinkies disappear.
 
  • #12
Twinkies have a shelf life of about 30 days, but are typically sold in under 7 days.
 
  • #13
  • #15
NOOOOOO, once a year I hunt for their orange cupcakes. Life will end if those go off the market. :cry:
 
  • #16
Their Cupcakes were delicious, but about five to ten minutes after consuming them I always started hating myself.
 
  • #17
Buy a bag of twinkies and save them for 50 years. Could be worth something.
 
  • #18
FreeMitya said:
Their Cupcakes were delicious, but about five to ten minutes after consuming them I always started hating myself.

Yep. They are good, but make me feel...bleh...
 
  • #19
I will miss you, Raspberry Zingers.
 
  • #21
Evo said:
The only thing made by hostess that I eat is their orange cupcakes, which are almost impossible to find. Whenever I find them, I buy the entire stock, which is usually only 2 packs. :frown: I even have a certain way they must be eaten. These are not to be taken lightly.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0029TISNG/?tag=pfamazon01-20

Be sure to use the amazon sponser so PF gets credit!

I may have to buy some for myself, they [STRIKE]are[/STRIKE] were the best thing hostess [STRIKE]has[/STRIKE] had to offer.
 
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  • #22
Greg Bernhardt said:
Buy a bag of twinkies and save them for 50 years. Could be worth something.

They'll probably still be edible, too!
 
  • #23
Charmar said:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0029TISNG/?tag=pfamazon01-20

Be sure to use the amazon sponser so PF gets credit!

I may have to buy some for myself, they [STRIKE]are[/STRIKE] were the best thing hostess [STRIKE]has[/STRIKE] had to offer.
GASP! MUST..BUY..CUPCAKES!

Thanks you!

I saw a box like this at the store the other day, but they were strawberry.
 
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  • #24
What's a twinky? And why do they make you guilty and seem to last forever?
 
  • #26
tahayassen said:
What's a twinky? And why do they make you guilty and seem to last forever?

They're this strange chemical concoction that rises into a sponge like form after baking. You can sit on them for an entire car trip from Nacogdoches, Texas to Nacogdoches, Louisiana and at the end of the trip, they'll spring right back into their original shape - and still taste great, too, which is even more surprising!
 
  • #27
jtbell said:
Maybe at lunch I'll check out a couple of the convenience stores near campus and see if I can find some Cupcakes or Twinkies.

Well, I tried. I visited four different stores and came up empty-handed. Either Hostess's distribution had dwindled because of the strike, or they were never a strong player in this market to begin with. Little Debbie apparently dominates the South. I also saw a Dolly Madison rack.
 
  • #28
I've always liked Little Debbie better. But I try not to eat any of that stuff anymore. Children need to go back to eating fruit for dessert.
 
  • #29
I've never been able to eat twinkies, they make me vomit. That mucous-like white goop in the middle always gagged me. I have, to this day. never been able to eat an entire twinkie. May they burn in hell, can't stand them.

I like the orange cupcakes, but when I reach that white goop, I scrape it into the trash and remove that tasteless white squiggle on top and eat what's left.
 
  • #30
tahayassen said:
What's a twinky? And why do they make you guilty and seem to last forever?

Sugar.
 
  • #31
Evo said:
I've never been able to eat twinkies, they make me vomit. That viscous white goop in the middle always gagged me. I have, to this day. never been able to eat an entire twinkie. May they burn in hell, can't stand them.

That's like me with fruit baked into pastries (especially pie).
 
  • #32
FreeMitya said:
That's like me with fruit baked into pastries (especially pie).
Yeah, I can see that, except blackberry cobbler. MMMMMMMMMM, blackberries, lemon juice, a sprinkle of sugar, flaky crust.
 
  • #33
FreeMitya said:
Sugar.

That can't be right. Bananas have plenty of sugar, and whenever I buy them, they're brown by the time I get home.
 
  • #34
leroyjenkens said:
That can't be right. Bananas have plenty of sugar, and whenever I buy them, they're brown by the time I get home.

Their durability obviously has to do with other ingredients as well, but it's not as if a new bag of pure sugar is going to go bad any time soon (at least, not in my experience).

http://sciencefocus.com/qa/how-does-sugar-act-preservative

If you want a source with references:

http://www.livestrong.com/article/516259-the-use-of-salt-sugar-as-food-preservatives/

Refined sugar is thought to have originated in India approximately 2,500 years ago. Its use is described in a medical text nearly that old. This "sweet salt" did not become inexpensive and widespread until the 18th century, when Europeans planted sugar cane in quantity throughout their new tropical colonies. Like salt, sugar preserves foods by osmosis. If you've ever watched a bowl of strawberries becoming juicy under the influence of a spoonful of sugar, you've seen the effect in action.
I thought it would also be worth mentioning that in a banana that weighs 118 g, 14 g of that weight is sugar.

http://caloriecount.about.com/calories-bananas-i9040

In a Twinkie that weighs 42.5 g, 18 g of that weight is sugar. There is, gram for gram, much more sugar in a Twinkie.

http://caloriecount.about.com/calories-hostess-twinkies-i113361
 
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  • #36
Greg Bernhardt said:
Sounds like it's over
http://money.msn.com/business-news/article.aspx?feed=OBR&date=20121116&id=15805307
It may be over. There is a Hostess plant in Biddeford, ME and the company tried to replace bakers with temp help and managers. Unfortunately for Hostess, the temp company turned down their contract, saying that they were not in the business of union-busting.

http://www.pressherald.com/news/Hostess-looks-for-replacements-for-striking-Biddeford-workers.html

[quote = Rock Coast Personnel]“The economy’s tough enough right now. We don’t support breaking the union,” DiGiulio said. “We also have clients this could be an affront to, so we turned this down.”[/quote]

We should note that the striking "bakers" are actually skilled workers who operate complex machinery, specialized to make the treats that Hostess sells. After watching my grandmother die of complications of diabetes, I was backed off eating anything sugary. Still, I understand why some folks might mourn the loss of their favorite sweet pastries.

We have occasional spots on the local news about Hostess. The bakers' union rep claims that Hostess had announced plans to close 9 plants in their restructuring plan, and that their claims of closing 3 plants due to the strike was a move designed to intimidate the bakers' union. I don't know how valid this claim is, though having been on a union negotiating team as a papermaker, I have seen public pronunciations made by well-heeled companies that attempted to subvert popular opinion during negotiations or strikes.
 
  • #37
Greg Bernhardt said:
http://money.msn.com/business-news/article.aspx?feed=OBR&date=20121116&id=15805307

This is bigger than I thought it was:

[Hostess's] brands include Wonder, Nature's Pride, Dolly Madison, Drake's, Butternut, Home Pride and Merita, but it is probably best known for Twinkies - basically a cream-filled sponge cake.

Many of these brands will probably re-surface under new owners after the names are sold off in the liquidation. Twinkies II, anyone?
 
  • #38
I hope this doesn't bring down the ban-hammer down on me but:
This adds weight to the whole "the world is ending December 2012" doesn't it? I mean, no more Twinkies the month before? This is a bad sign...
:smile:
 
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  • #39
Start checking the clearance stores, Evo. Hostess is going to liquidate unsold inventory, and maybe your orange sweets will be there. If you get extras, put them in the freezer!
 
  • #40
Another case of union workers cutting off their nose to spite their face, IMO.
 
  • #41
Inside Edition has a recipe for Twinkies on their website.
 
  • #44
Darn, a company that makes all kinds of crp I can't eat is going out of business? But I'm as nostolgic as the next guy. It is hard to imagine a world without twinkies.

I hear that most women prefer Ding Dongs and most men prefer Ho Hos. Is there any truth to that?
Yes, you do have to allow your mind to roam to the gutter for that one...
 
  • #45
Ivan Seeking said:
I hear that most women prefer Ding Dongs and most men prefer Ho Hos. Is there any truth to that?
Yes, you do have to allow your mind to roam to the gutter for that one...

You owe me a keyboard. :biggrin:
 
  • #46
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  • #47
Serendipitous success! :!)

I happened to go to Wal-Mart today and it occurred to me to check out their snack-cake section. Sure enough, there's a nearly empty Hostess section. I snagged one of the last two 8-cake boxes of Golden Cupcakes. Same shape and chocolate frosting as on the Cupcakes I ate as a kid, but the cake part seems to be the same as a Twinkie except for the shape (instead of chocolate). Maybe it's the same as in the orange-frosted Cupcakes. I figured $2.50 was worth it for the nostalgia.

There were also several bags of small donuts (both powdered-sugar and chocolate-frosted ones) but those are pretty generic.
 
  • #48
Collateral damage in Maine. JJ Nissen runs local bakeries and distribution centers, and they are owned by Hostess' parent company.
 
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  • #49
I went out this morning to get one last taste of Twinkies before they all disappear, but when I got to the Woolworth's, they were shuttered. So I'm getting into my Studebaker and heading for the airport where I hope to get the next Pan Am flight to Constantinople. Wish me luck.
 
  • #50
I find myself in rare agreement with George Will and Newt Gingrich. Products like Twinkies and Ding Dongs are proven products. Hard to say what will stay and what will go but not everything is going to disappear. I would expect that most of their leader products will be produced by someone. I seriously doubt Twinkies will go away. There is probably an inside battle going on right now with various companies scrambling to produce these.

I have to wonder if this was more about unions or age. I have worked in a number of factories for old companies like Hostess [automation work], Granny Goose being the worst example, and some of these places were atrocious! Most food production facilities are immaculate but there are a few horrific exceptions to the rule and I would bet ding dongs to donuts that Hostess had big problems internally. The biggest problem is often the equipment costs. Entire factories can get out of date with the cost of replacment too high to survive. Slowly the environment degenerates, failure and production losses increase, the company starts losing money, morale declines, attitudes change, no one gives a damn anymore, and eventually the company is doomed. It is a fairly familar pattern in my world.
 

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