As the nation lazily drags its feet through an abbreviated workweek, desperately aiming for Thanksgiving Thursday, we have been inundated with talk of Twinkies.
The pastry’s parent company, Hostess Brands Inc., has been flirting with disaster since Friday’s announcement that liquidation could be imminent. This came after a disagreement with the Bakery, Confectionery, Tobacco Workers and Grain Millers’ International Union, which culminated in a strike that has affected at least 20 Hostess bakeries.
But it looks like the Twinkie, along with its siblings, Ho Hos and Sno-Balls, may live to see another day. At the request of a U.S. bankruptcy court judge, Hostess Brands Inc. and the Bakers Union have agreed to start mediation hearings this week in a last ditch attempt to save the flailing cake maker.
So worry not, Twinkie lovers. Even if mediation talks go south for Hostess, the individual brands (Twinkies, Ding Dongs and the like) have a good chance of finding a second home, the company says several potential buyers have already expressed interest.
On a bizarre side note, you may recall the name of one such potential buyer, Marc Leder, whose Boca Raton home was the setting for Mitt Romney’s infamous 47% comment.
Update:Mediation talks between Hostess Brands and the Bakers Union crumbled late Tuesday night and liquidation of the 82-year-old company now looks inevitable.
Hostess currently employs roughly 18,500 workers.
Lana Schupbach