Havre area feels Twinkie loss

A sign on the Sweetheart Bakery Outlet reads "Tuesday 20th will be the last day our store will be open."

The fallout from the great Twinkie Wars of 2012 is reaching to the Hi-Line this week.

Sweetheart Bakery Outlet, known as Eddy's Bakery or the Bread Store, on 2nd Street is the largest casualty, closing its doors at the end of business Tuesday. The store employs three people.

Employees of the store said they couldn't comment and referred all requests to the Interstate Brands headquarters in Billings. After leaving a message for Havre's District Manager, Steve Kuehn in Billings, a receptionist forwarded further information requests to a phone number from Dallas, Texas, belonging to Derek Halverson, whose connection to Hostess, Interstate Brands, or Havre's particular outlet store was not made clear.

Halverson did not comment by deadline this morning, but a sign on the front of the building said the store would close Tuesday.

At Gary & Leo's Fresh Foods, the rush to stock up on Hosess' signature product, Twinkies, has already cleared the shelves, according to Manager Tracy Job.

Job also said the larger company, Interstate Brands, was the store's supplier for bread. With that company leaving the bread game, Job said they needed to find a new supplier, which they've already done.

"They were having some challenges producing enough bread. We've just had to look for other suppliers, " Job said. "We're going to be as prudent as we can to get the best prices for our customers. "

Hostess Brands Inc. announced last week that it would be closed, citing continuing losses and an employee strike.

The good news, however, is that the company said it is confident a buyer will be found and the Twinkie brand will survive.

The company is to appear in federal Bankruptcy court in Detroit today.