The idea that the Twinkie, so long a staple of America's culinary landscape and fat kids' lunch boxes, would disappear forever once Hostess went bankrupt was always laughable. And now that the company is officially in the process of shutting down, a clearer picture is emerging of who might inherit Hostess' extensive line of snack cakes.
Walmart's a possibility. Bloomberg reported yesterday that the retailer is one of about two dozen companies to submit bids for all or part of the Hostess empire. It's not clear from the story which one Walmart is aiming for.
There are other big-name bidders. Kroger is one; the baking giant Bimbo is another. But Walmart, with its vociferously anti-union culture and thousands of snack food aisles, seems like an ideal fit.
Whatever winds up happy will take some time to play out. Hostess executives didn't give themselves such large bonuses for fun.
