OT: No more Twinkies???

It will be interesting to see how they feel a few months from now. Philosophical wins can be very expensive. Who is going to pay for the food stamps and medial costs? Wait, I think I know!

========================================== "The Texas State Fair had introduced the fried Twinkie to great popular acclaim, and the notion spread to other state fairs across the U.S., as well as some establishments that specialize in fried foods.[13] Fried Twinkies are sold throughout the U.S. in fairs as well as ball games, and in various restaurants." ...Wikipedia

First since junk food is a vital part of any shop or wood working area I think it is a mistake to label this threat OT.

If the baker's union takes that approach to each of the companies they represent??? then eventually the union will cease to exist.

I wonder what they say when the Hostess Brand reappear made by other companies possibly non union and 20000 of their members are out of work.

It takes a strange mind to see that as a positive or is it sour grapes. "Will I didn't want it anyway."

A couple more twinkie facts.

Originally they were a sponge cake filled with banana crème. They were cooked in shortbread pans. It was an effort to use the pans year round. Apparently the pans were used of a single event/holiday. But world war 2 happened and rationing was in effect. So they made a cheap knockoff and the rest is history.

Also, some folks are now making up batches of "gourmet twinkies" to sell in some local markets. Which raises the quest, what exactly is a "gourmet twinkie"? And how much money will be charged for this "culinary" item. (And who pays big bucks for a "gourmet twinkie"?)

What else can they do? If they tried "working a full day", it might start some horrible trend toward efficiency. They sure don't want that.

-- Every day I remind myself that my inner and outer life are based on the labors of other men, living and dead, and that I must exert myself in order to give in the same measure as I have received and am still receiving. -- Albert Einstein

With a shelf-life of approximately 26 years, there's no reason Twinkies can't be baked in China and shipped on containerized merchant ship.

Why those things are so light you can fill up a 747 and liftoff weight will be close to a dry weight ...:-)

One of the articles I read talked about how this was an old company that did things the old way. The modern approach was to grow the market outside of the US. They did little or no exporting. They also mentioned how the products were chock full of preservatives. And that is exactly what their competitors were doing. And they were shipping them both ways. Baking in other countries and shipping them here. And baking them here and shipping them overseas as a "premium" product.

Can you imagine a junk food item, full of chemicals, being promoted as an exclusive "premium" product?

The other point made is that there is tremendous over capacity in the baking industry. Not only are people eating less and less of this kind of food, but they built up the capacity to ship overseas. I suppose their competitors will do a little better now. But it is not a business I would want to be in. I would think that the same pressures and problems that the Hostess folks had would end up affecting every one else in the industry.

it's not a public company, so there are no stockholders.

Ah, okay. I think you mean it's privately held (not publicly traded).

Why those things are so light you can fill up a 747 and liftoff weight will be close to a dry weight ...:-) ======================================================================================= They are made in Canada.

The brand will probably get bought by the Chinese for cheap and the products will end up being made by Chinese non-union slave labor. If the unions want to do something good they should go try to unionize China.

I was shopping in a Super Wal-Mart today, happened to go down the bread aisle, and spotted 3 different brands of what could only be called "Twinkies"... different product name, different manufacturer, but the pictures on the box looked just like the real thing. Same for the cupcakes, Ding-dongs, etc. No, they weren't new products - they've been there all along. I can't attest to their taste, but I'd bet they all come pretty close to "Twinkies".

So what does that say about the Baker's union, and what does that say about the buying public? Panic buying of something just because of the brand name?

I did shop at a nearby Hostess Bakery Outlet the Friday they closed - I wanted a loaf of bread, and rather than wander through any of three larger grocery stores just to get a single loaf of bread, I stopped by the Hostess store. Took me 45 minutes to get to the cash register, and along the way, I'd picked up a few packages of a particular brand of gravy mix not available anywhere else, a bottle of butter pecan syrup, and a package of shortbread cookies to go along with that loaf of bread

- all at half price. No Twinkies in sight, and no interest on my part in any of the cupcakes or the myriad of other baked goodies still on the shelves.

Sigh...