Twinkie maker Hostess Brands allowed to shut
HOSTESS Brands last night won permission from a US bankruptcy judge to begin shutting down, and expressed optimism it will find new homes for many of its US brands, which include Twinkies, Drake’s cakes and Wonder Bread.
US Bankruptcy Judge Robert Drain in New York authorised current management, led by restructuring specialist Gregory Rayburn, to immediately begin efforts to wind down the 82-year-old company, a process expected to take one year.
“It appears clear to me that the debtors have taken the right course in seeking to implement the wind-down plan as promptly as possible,” Drain said near the end of a four-hour hearing.
The judge authorised Hostess to begin the liquidation process one day after his last-ditch mediation effort between the Texas-based company and unions broke down.