We won't be having Wonder Bread toast for breakfast....

[Ponch ®]

No Twinkies?!?! No Cupcakes?!?!? At this point, I'm hoping the Mayans are right, cuz theres no point in going on....

Hostess, maker of Twinkies, Ding Dongs and Wonder Bread, set to close and lay off 18,500 workers, citing nationwide strike as cause





Ding Dong! The Twinkie is dead.

And the Devil Dog, Drake's Coffee Cake and Wonder Bread, too.

Hostess, one of the nation's most iconic and enduring food brands, announced Friday it's going out of business and laying off 18,500 workers amid bankruptcy and labor strife.

The 82-year-old company will try to sell its formulas and brands, but until that happens no more Sno Balls or Ho Ho's will be made or shipped.

In the snack aisles of New York's food shops, there was mourning for those golden tubes of cream-filled sponge cake.

"Are you kidding me?" said Lorraine Bennett, 53, a medical worker from Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn. "After all these years, they're closing?

"Twinkies are my favorite! I love that cream filling. And you can fry them. We've got to protest. I'm calling the CEO."

Even though it racks up $2.5 billion in sales a year, Hostess has been in bankruptcy since January, for the second time in less than a decade.

The company wanted to slash wages and benefits, and while the Teamsters struck a deal, the bakers union balked and went on strike last week.

Crippled by the walkout, the company warned it would shut its 33 plants on Friday if workers weren't back on the job Thursday.

Management squarely blamed labor, saying union wages and pensions had made the company unprofitable and unable to secure financing to emerge from bankruptcy.

"We deeply regret the necessity of today's decision, but we do not have the financial resources to weather an extended nationwide strike," said CEO Gregory Rayburn.

But the bottom line also may have been hurt by skyrocketing competition in the snack industry and a trend toward healthier eating.

"They didn't change with the times," said Ivan Arguello, owner of a Key Food in Brooklyn Heights that does not stock Hostess products. "My children don't even know what Drake and Hostess are."

The bagel store next to the Key Food doesn't sell Hostess either — though worker Michael LaForte was sad to hear of the firm's demise.

"I grew up with the Twinkies," he said. "In fact, I sent a box to a friend in Austria a few months ago. He had seen them in the movies and wanted to try them.

"He loved them."

Bennett said she is so distraught at the loss of her favorite treat, she would even accept a tweaked version.

"Maybe they could make a whole-grain Twinkie," she said.


Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/life-style/eats/twinkie-maker-hostess-close-cites-nationwide-worker-strike-article-1.1203105#ixzz2CPOvy695

[bull]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MeS6DvyLScE

[JB400]

I guess we better stock up.  I haven't had a Twinkie in years,  I go get me a box or two.

Damn unions.  I can understand needing them at the turn of the last century, but we have laws now to prevent unsafe working conditions and get desent wages.  It all boils down to money.  Our American icons don't mean a damn thing anymore.  Just money.

I hope someone buys them and brings these treats back.

[John_Kunkel]

I hope the unions learn a lesson but I doubt they will. 

[moparstuart]

they wont go away all the good brands will be bought up by another company

[JB400]

They'll learn real quick.  A low paying job is better than no job.

I hope this is just a way to get them to resettle.  I don't want to see that many people lose their jobs and/or homes.  I showed my support for Hostess.  I bought a box of each product.  Get them now, when they're gone, they're gone.

[Old Moparz]

Sad to see a large company go under, but to simply blame the union for the sole reason is BS. I want to make a note that I'm not saying this as being pro-union, I have never been in one. I do think it may have been another nail in the coffin, but the company had a history of being poorly run. It had been bought & taken over many times by larger companies & had declared bankruptcy years ago. At one time, I think maybe in the late 70's, I'm pretty sure that one of the major telephone companies had owned Wonder Bread & might have been before the phone company was split up. (Can't find that online though)

My own idea on what also contributed to lower sales, is that more & more people are not eating pure garbage as much as they used to. Organic food sales are at all time highs & make up a much larger market than at anytime in the past. My wife, my daughter & myself, never eat any of that Hostess & Wonder stuff. Partly because of the list of science lab ingredients in them, but mostly because it tastes like shit.  

edit.....

I knew my memory was still working.  

It was ITT that had owned it........ http://www.itt.com/about/history/

The Conglomerate Years

The next chapter for ITT can best be described as the conglomerate years. From 1960 to 1977, with Harold Geneen at the helm, ITT acquired more than 350 companies — at one time securing deals at the rate of one acquisition per week. The portfolio included well-known businesses such as Sheraton hotels, Avis Rent-a-Car, Hartford Insurance and Continental Baking, the maker of Wonder Bread. Under Geneen's management, ITT grew from a medium-sized business with $760 million in sales to a global corporation with $17 billion in sales.

[moparstuart]

They have seen the writing on the wall for years with competition and healthy food choices cutting into there profit . Did they try and develope health options too NO , did they try and come up with sugar free stuff no . Do i think the union was stupid Yes , but so is upper management in this company too . My dad helped build this company and worked for them for almost 40 years as head of there legal department and arranged tons of acquisitions . He retired about 12 years ago and immediately ended up losing all his pention from them . So i have an axe to grind here anyway but there management is so stupid . Back when my dad was there they grew the brand and looked for new and innovative products . The last twinkie I ate was nasty and dry not even as good at the knock off out there from little debbie and the like .

[twodko]

I am pro union and worked the majority on my career as a union member. With that said we are far removed from the post WW2 needs of the country and it's workforce. The problem is the unions still behave like it is. Company/union relationships are so hostile and contentious these days it's ugly and counter productive working in that environment. Believe me I know and the union I belonged to represented highly skilled technical engineering staff. It's an us against them mentality that serves neither side well. There is also a lot of dead wood running unions that simply won't let go of the old ways and will not bargain with the economic realities of the times in mind. This attitude results in companies taking the "our way or the highway" stance which can only result in walk outs, lock outs, general strikes and ultimately permanent replacement workers. Companies and unions can't have It all their way, if unions are to survive, moderation, common sense and the financial health of the company and union must be at the fore front of contract negotiations. In many highly technical highly skilled professions where, at minimum, a Bachelors degree is required, union representation and bargaining serves both the company and union by attracting AND retaining the highest caliber non management employees as well as maintaining wage/benefits commensurate with the educational/skill sets required by the company.
Union "stick in the mud" leadership needs new blood and union members need to remember.......they work for the company not the union. Therein lies the problem. Unions still have a viable place in today's workforce but moderation not combat is the key.  

[Old Moparz]

I am pro union and worked the majority on my career as a union member. With that said we are far removed from the post WW2 needs of the country and it's workforce. The problem is the unions still behave like it is. Company/union relationships are so hostile and contentious these days it's ugly and counter productive working in that environment. Believe me I know and the union I belonged to represented highly skilled technical engineering staff. It's an us against them mentality that serves neither side well. There is also a lot of dead wood running unions that simply won't let go of the old ways and will not bargain with the economic realities of the times in mind. This attitude results in companies taking the "our way or the highway" stance which can only result in walk outs, lock outs, general strikes and ultimately permanent replacement workers. Companies and unions can't have It all their way, if unions are to survive, moderation, common sense and the financial health of the company and union must be at the fore front of contract negotiations. In many highly technical highly skilled professions where, at minimum, a Bachelors degree is required, union representation and bargaining serves both the company and union by attracting AND retaining the highest caliber non management employees as well as maintaining wage/benefits commensurate with the educational/skill sets required by the company.
Union "stick in the mud" leadership needs new blood and union members need to remember.......they work for the company not the union. Therein lies the problem. Unions still have a viable place in today's workforce but moderation not combat is the key.  

Man, that's so close to what I've observed over the years that it's hard to believe you're a union guy.   

I have to agree with you, I've seen the same thing at a few places over the years. The last place was a civil engineering firm that had Local 825 guys for land surveying. I heard more back stabbing conversations from both sides you'd have thought you might come to work one day & find dead bodies.    Management constantly looked for projects & loop holes to get around the union, & the union constantly looked for ways to get in on everything the company did. Sad, because the people on both sides involved were decent until they had to work together.

When I was in college I worked part time in a packing & shipping company in NYC that was non union. During the time I was there it switched to a union shop & was only open for about one more year until the owner closed it down. It wasn't the union that was the reason for it's financial issues, but it was part of the "I'm not going to compromise under any condition" mentality from both sides.

[stripedelete]

The truth is somewhere in the middle. 

As already posted, the product will not go away.

[nvrbdn]

damn unions? when the head honcho gets 2 mil a year and the mean ol union guy gets concessions every year? yea, lets teach those bad unions a lesson. the head honcho will still get his 2 mil when they close. what will the union worker get? thrown out in the street.

[Fred]

I guess we better stock up.  I haven't had a Twinkie in years,

You need to get out more. 

[NHCharger]

My job foreman has a friend that worked at the plant in Maine. Starting pay for a newbie was $20.00/hr. plus full bennys. Not bad for a rural area where most starter jobs for the same job skill is $10.00/hr.
The union pres has already blamed Romney and Bain-like capitalist pigs for the plant closing. He said nothing about the current President's wife campaign against junk foods like the products that Hostess sells.

[Brock Samson]

In the runup to the strike and bankruptcy:
"Hostess's then-CEO, Brian Driscoll, saw his salary rise to $2.55 million from $750,000--a 300% increase.

"Other executives' salaries were increased by from 35% to 80%," the creditors said".

http://www.teamster.org/content/dow-jones-uncovers-alleged-looting-hostess-amid-talk-%E2%80%98shared-sacrifice%E2%80%99-execs

I know three unrelated folks who have worked for Hostess at two different plants and Management was always trying to cheat them and deny them their benefits.

[Mopar Nut]

Someone is selling Twinkies on eBag, is this the guy selling the Cuda' for 3 million?

[Mike DC]

 
Who is seriously gonna buy a sugar-free Twinkie? 


IMHO if people aren't buying Hostess stuff anymore it's because they taste like crap these days.  That isn't because they are junkfood, it's because products like that are usually more like chemical imitations of junkfood than real junk these days.  The end result is usually even less healthy and tastes worse than real "junk" should. 

[nvrbdn]

who made the banana flips back in the day? havent been able to find them for forever. but my fav's are the raspberry zingers and the snow balls.

[bull]

The unions began failing as soon as they started protecting the lazy scammers among their own ranks and picking political sides. If the unions started holding their own members accountable rather than coddling the dirt bags they would probably thrive.

[JB400]

For the heck of it, I bought a couple boxes.  I will agree, management was a problem.  But, hey, like a said before, a low paying job is better than no job.  But, as far as management getting extreme raises, what company ceo's haven't given themselves these raises?  Some of these companies received bailouts, and the first thing they did was give everyone a bonus or a raise.  Management just needs to keep their hands out of the cookie jars.  Invest in the company itself and everyone profits.

As far as the unions, they are just as greedy as management.  If these unions want to make just as much as management, they need to be in management.  There is no way a dishwasher will make as much as the owner unless the dishwasher becomes the owner.

[nvrbdn]

 

[Old Moparz]

Poor advertising is another reason why they're going under. Think about it, which would you rather have? A cold, refreshing glass of wholesome, all natural, healthy milk that will get you more hot babes than Hugh Hefner, or some rubbery processed food forced on you by your grandma & a walking redneck phallic symbol snack that'll rot your teeth?

[learical1]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YJe5sMBpnNY

[twodko]

There goes anymore Twinke murder defense attempts.   

[learical1]

There goes anymore Twinke murder defense attempts.   

How about the Twinkie withdrawal murder defense?

[Dans 68]

Like it has been said twice, the major brands will be sold off to another company. It may take a year or two to get those products back on the shelves, so stock up now...I already did (for my daughters lunches....    )

I have fond memories of walking home from Jr. HIgh School, stopping by the local 7-11, and buying a package of cupcakes and a an orange Nehi. The good 'ole days. 

Dan

[nh_mopar_fan]

So a bunch of states legalize medicinal pot a couple weeks ago and now they're no longer making Twinkies?

I smell a conspiracy, duuuuuuuuuude. 

[Mopar Nut]

Good news, we might have jalapeno Twinkies.

http://nbclatino.com/2012/11/17/will-twinkies-be-reborn-through-new-mexican-ownership/

[twodko]

     "So a bunch of states legalize medicinal pot a couple weeks ago and now they're no longer making Twinkies?

     I smell a conspiracy, duuuuuuuuuude."


Outstanding! If we notice a startup company that will be making chocolate cupcakes, cream filled cake tubes and a mound of cake covered with marshmallow that will be the cue to watch for an IPO.

[hatersaurusrex]

All they had to do was kill the Twinkie and come out with 'New Twinkies'.   Remember what that did for Coca-Cola?   Coke was dead, and all it took was them pulling the plug for a year or so for everyone to come running back.    The fact that New Coke tasted like flat, warm Pepsi didn't hurt either.

[derailed]

Weren't Twinkies suppose to be the only food the would survive a nuclear holocaust? I sure hope those Mayans aren't right.

[dodgecharger-fan]

For anyone in the U.S. that absolutely NEEDS their WonderBread, I'm taking orders.

The name is owned by and the product is made and sold, in Canada, by Weston Bakeries.

Midnight runs in a Big Black Dodge start next week. 

[Tilar]

The unions began failing as soon as they started protecting the lazy scammers among their own ranks and picking political sides. If the unions started holding their own members accountable rather than coddling the dirt bags they would probably thrive.

[Tilar]

For anyone in the U.S. that absolutely NEEDS their WonderBread, I'm taking orders.

The name is owned by and the product is made and sold, in Canada, by Weston Bakeries.

Midnight runs in a Big Black Dodge start next week. 

I can see it now, The Dukes of Weston Bakeries!

[JB400]

It could be that the Twinkie could survive after all.



http://www.alaskadispatch.com/article/imported-twinkies-mexico-indestructible-snack-may-survive

[2Gunz]

My job foreman has a friend that worked at the plant in Maine. Starting pay for a newbie was $20.00/hr. plus full bennys. Not bad for a rural area where most starter jobs for the same job skill is $10.00/hr.
The union pres has already blamed Romney and Bain-like capitalist pigs for the plant closing. He said nothing about the current President's wife campaign against junk foods like the products that Hostess sells.

Thats exactly the problem.....

You cant pay somebody the equivalent of $25-$30 a hour (health care, vacation blah blah figured in) to sweep the floor.
Its great for the employees, but reality is, it just doesn't make business sense.

Im not anti-union, and in general I think unions should be a good thing.....  However....

I deal with the Locals a lot, and sometimes Im just shocked.

What should be "Im happy to have good job and make a good wage."

Is often.....  "Your lucky Im here half-assing this job".

There seems to be a lot of self entitlement that comes with the unions.

[Mopar Nut]

This explains it.

[Ponch ®]

For anyone in the U.S. that absolutely NEEDS their WonderBread, I'm taking orders.

The name is owned by and the product is made and sold, in Canada, by Weston Bakeries.

Midnight runs in a Big Black Dodge start next week. 

I can see it now, The Dukes of Weston Bakeries!

Frozen Empire.

[BrianShaughnessy]

The wonder bread and the twinkies I can do without...  but dammit I love the hostess chocolate cupcakes     All the other brands of chocolate cupcakes suck.


Anyhoo...  this just in...   the bakers union and hostess agreed to go to mediation which is scheduled for 11/20.   http://money.cnn.com/2012/11/19/news/companies/hostess-bankruptcy-bonuses/index.html?hpt=hp_t3    

 

[Ponch ®]

The wonder bread and the twinkies I can do without...  but dammit I love the hostess chocolate cupcakes     All the other brands of chocolate cucakes suck.

I know it's not much consolation, but if you live near a Mexi-market, you should give these a try. Not quite as good, but close.

[moparstuart]

The wonder bread and the twinkies I can do without...  but dammit I love the hostess chocolate cupcakes     All the other brands of chocolate cucakes suck.

I know it's not much consolation, but if you live near a Mexi-market, you should give these a try. Not quite as good, but close.

put alittle captain in ya   

[nvrbdn]

so, has it all been a hoax to drum up sales and new interest in their cakes?

[Mopar Nut]

so, has it all been a hoax to drum up sales and new interest in their cakes?

Sounds like it, just like New Coke did, boost sales for Coke U.S.A.

Was there any takers? Oneway to clear out old stock.

[Brock Samson]

In the runup to the strike and bankruptcy:
"Hostess's then-CEO, Brian Driscoll, saw his salary rise to $2.55 million from $750,000--a 300% increase.

"Other executives' salaries were increased by from 35% to 80%," the creditors said".

http://www.teamster.org/content/dow-jones-uncovers-alleged-looting-hostess-amid-talk-%E2%80%98shared-sacrifice%E2%80%99-execs

I know three unrelated folks who have worked for Hostess at two different plants and Management was always trying to cheat them and deny them their benefits.
read it again then.

[Brock Samson]

Or, If your too lazy to click the freakin link..
DJ Creditors Say Hostess May Have 'Manipulated' Executive Pay

By Rachel Feintzeig
Of DOW JONES DAILY BANKRUPTCY REVIEW


Unsecured creditors suspect that Hostess Brands Inc. may have "manipulated" its executives' pay--sending its former chief executive's salary, in particular, skyrocketing- in the months leading up to its Chapter 11 filing, in an effort to dodge the Bankruptcy Code's compensation requirements, according to a redacted court filing reviewed by Dow Jones.

The official committee representing Hostess's unsecured creditors wants to launch a formal investigation in the bankruptcy case, hoping to dig deeper into the bakery company's senior executive compensation. The information the group has already gathered suggests "the possibility" that the company converted a chunk of its top executives' pay from performance-based bonuses to guaranteed salary, "at least in part to sidestep" rules designed to ensure that companies in bankruptcy aren't enticing their employees to stay on board with the promise of cash.

"As such, the debtors' continued payment of the executives' salaries in these increased amounts may violate the Bankruptcy Code," the unsecured creditors said in documents that were filed with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in White Plains, N.Y., but largely redacted. Dow Jones was able to view those details because when the papers were saved to a word-processing program, the redactions disappeared.

A spokesman for Hostess dismissed the creditors' allegations.

"We do not believe their theory has any basis in law," he said. "Nevertheless, we are working cooperatively with the committee to address their concerns and expect to resolve this amicably."

In court papers, the creditors say testimony from Hostess's executive vice president of human resources indicates that "in the run-up to bankruptcy"--when Hostess had already hired bankruptcy attorneys--it was also working to shift its compensation structure. Hostess slashed bonuses payable only if certain performance goals were met and, on July 26, the company's compensation committee signed off on "substantial salary increases for numerous senior executives," the creditors said, calling the jumps "dramatic."

Hostess's then-CEO, Brian Driscoll, saw his salary rise to $2.55 million from $750,000--a 300% increase.

"Other executives' salaries were increased by from 35% to 80%," the creditors said.

While Driscoll--who abruptly abandoned his post at Hostess's helm last month, leaving a restructuring expert to take his place--ultimately refused a portion of the salary bump, others seem to have kept the funds, the creditors said. They noted that the company continues to pay the prebankruptcy salary increases, no piece of which was "made contingent upon any aspect of the debtors' business performance or operations."

Hostess's own compensation consultant noted "that the increased salaries were not incentive compensation at all," the creditors said, and urged the company to tie the payments to company performance and wrap them into an incentive plan once Hostess filed for bankruptcy. But Hostess "disregarded" the suggestion, the creditors said, and also failed to disclose that it had tweaked the executives' pay in the six months leading up to the bankruptcy. The creditors only learned of the changes during a February deposition of the human resources executive.

"The committee viewed this testimony with grave concern," the creditor group said. It sought more information, but Hostess "refused to cooperate."

The creditors are now turning to the bankruptcy court for help, seeking a judge's clearance to launch a formal probe. They want access to documents regarding the compensation changes, minutes of meetings of the board of directors and the compensation committee and documents from the outside compensation consultant brought on by Hostess, among other information.

Hostess's Chapter 11 case has been stalled for the last several weeks as the company and its unions continue to negotiate behind closed doors and both sides prepare for an April 17 trial over the company's request to shed its collective bargaining agreements in bankruptcy.

On Tuesday, the company filed a request for more time to propose a bankruptcy-exit plan, saying it couldn't move forward with a Chapter 11 proposal until it makes headway with regards to its labor issues and attempt to nab new capital. The company noted that it has launched a "parallel process" to pursue a sale of its assets "as a failsafe," should Hostess not obtain the changes it wants to its union deals.

The maker of Twinkies and Wonder Bread, which filed for bankruptcy in January, had long said it was actively searching for potential new investors and buyers but had resisted calls from creditors to launch a full-blown sale process before it dealt with its union issues.

(Dow Jones Daily Bankruptcy Review covers news about distressed companies and those under bankruptcy protection.)

-By Rachel Feintzeig, Dow Jones Daily Bankruptcy Review; 212-416-3755; rachel.feintzeig@dowjones.com