Coronavirus Leading To Panic Buying Of Hostess Twinkies And Ding Dongs

As the COVID-19 coronavirus continues spreading rather rapidly across the globe, one company is seeing an unexpected bump in the sales of their snack cakes.

Hostess Brands CEO Andy Callahan has stated that there’s been a notable increase in the sales of their ever-popular Twinkies and Ding Dongs. Both snacks are known for their unusually long shelf lives, something sure to be fueling many consumers to stock up on the tasty treats in the midst of the coronavirus epidemic.

Speaking to Yahoo Finance, Callahan stated:

We are benefiting likely in the short-term due to traffic. That’s the great thing about Hostess, we are there to celebrate things. We are there to comfort things. So we are seeing a slight uptick in traffic. It’s too early to tell, a lot of our point of sale data lags.

Other supplies are seeing major upticks in their sales numbers too, including obvious picks like water, hand sanitizer, and soap, resulting in some stores placing limits on how many identical items each customer is allowed to purchase during a trip.

The coronavirus – recently dubbed SARS-CoV-2 by officials – has infected over 100,000 people worldwide, including nearly 350 cases and 19 deaths in the United States alone. Florida has confirmed its first two deaths today following 14 reported cases of the virus in the state, and New York has declared a state of emergency as the number of cases there have skyrocketed to 76.

Many major entertainment events like SXSW, Game Developers Conference, CinemaCon 2020, and even the premiere of Superman: Red Son have unfortunately been cancelled due to the virus. Additionally, some major companies may see lengthy delays in manufacturing as the virus continues spreading. One such company is toy manufacturer Hasbro, which might be unable to meet the expected release dates of their Baby Yoda toy line for Disney. Sony and Microsoft’s upcoming next-generation consoles could also see some delays if the virus doesn’t quiet down soon, but there’s been no confirmation from either company on the subject just yet.