By Kim Choe with The Associated Press
It’s the quintessential American snack food that supposedly lasts forever.
But the Twinkie’s future is now in doubt, with its manufacturer Hostess Brands filing for bankruptcy.
The announcement has prompted a rush on Twinkies and other popular snacks Devil Dogs and Wonder Bread.
“No more Twinkies?” said Twinkie lover Peggy Baker.
“That’s my favourite. We’re not ever gonna get ‘em (again), I don’t like that,”
"We had two customers with the last box, trying to claim that box as theirs. It was pretty intense this morning!” said one supermarket spokesperson Kristy Jozwiak.
“All for Twinkies."
Online auction site eBay has been flooded by people trying to make a quick buck out of their last box of Twinkies - some with an asking price of thousands of dollars.
Journalists even tried to bring up the Twinkie crisis in a press conference with rotund New Jersey governor Chris Christie – but he wasn’t about to take the bait.
"Seriously, you're not asking me about Hostess Twinkies are you?” he exclaimed.
“I'm not answering that question… I'm on Saturday Night Live enough… You think you're getting me behind this microphone having me talk about Twinkies? This is a setup man, I know it. You people are the worst! This is a set up! I am not answering questions on Twinkies!"
Hostess’ closure will cost around 18,500 jobs in the US. The 82-year-old company is blaming ongoing strikes by unionised bakers, but the union says the company has suffered from nearly a decade of financial and operational mismanagement.
It may not quite be the end for Twinkies though. If Hostess gets approval to liquidate it will sell off its brands – and it’s thought that Mexican company Bimbo could be keen to take over production.
3 News / AP
source: newshub archive
