What would you do with 5.5 tons of Nutella? Maybe the same thing you'd do with 34,000 cans of Red Bull or 5.5 tons of coffee.

Somewhere in Germany, there's a thief who knows the answer.

German police reported that 5,000 jars of the chocolate-hazelnut spread were stolen over the weekend from a former railway station in Niederaula. The jars of Nutella were valued at about $21,000.
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Twinkies and other Hostess snacks could be back on shelves by this summer after a successful $410 million bid for the business.

The winning bid is a joint venture by private equity firms Apollo Global Management (APO) and Metropoulos & Co. A statement from Dean Metropoulos, founder of one of the firms, confirmed they are the winning bidder.
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Hormel Foods, the maker of Spam luncheon meat, is paying $700 million to buy the Skippy peanut butter brand from consumer products maker Unilever, the companies announced Thursday.

Hormel said Skippy has annual sales of $370 million, nearly $100 million of which comes from outside the United States. Skippy, which was first introduced in 1932, is the leading brand of peanut butter in China and the No. 2 peanut butter brand overall, behind only Jif, which is owned by J.M. Smucker.
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Hostess Brands and a key union agreed Monday to try to mediate their dispute - an unexpected development that could spare the company from permanently shutting down.

The Bakery Workers union, which represents 5,000 of the 18,500 employees at the maker of Twinkies and Wonder Bread, went on strike on Nov. 9. The company had imposed paycuts and other concessions opposed by the union's membership.
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Hostess Brands - the maker of such iconic baked goods as Twinkies, Devil Dogs and Wonder Bread - announced Friday that it is asking a federal bankruptcy court for permission to close its operations, blaming a strike by bakers protesting a new contract imposed on them.

The closing will result in Hostess' nearly 18,500 workers losing their jobs as the company shuts 33 bakeries and 565 distribution centers nationwide, as well as 570 outlet stores. The Bakery, Confectionery, Tobacco Workers and Grain Millers International Union represents around 5,000 Hostess employees.
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Nestle is recalling more than 200,000 canisters of its chocolate drink mix Nesquik because of possible contamination of salmonella.

Nestle said the problem occurred on batches of the the mix produced in October. The bottom of the canister says it is best to use by October 2014. The size of the canisters affected are 40.7 ounces, 21.8 ounces, and 10.9 ounces. The two smaller containers have a promotion for the current Disney movie "Wreck-It Ralph" on the side of the container and the words "Be a Hero" across the bottom.

Nestle said the problem was caused by ingredient supplier, Omya Inc. that it has issued a recall of certain lots of its ingredient, calcium carbonate. Linda Pleiman, an Omya spokesperson, said that it had notified its other customers of the problem but was not aware of any other recalls at this time.
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Hostess Brands filed a plan to emerge from bankruptcy which will involve cuts in employees' pay, health and pension plans.

But the future of the maker of Twinkies and Wonder Bread is still in doubt. The company said it could still go out of business if the Bakery Workers union carries out a threat to strike.

The iconic company's reorganization plan, filed Wednesday with the federal bankruptcy court in New York, calls for an 8% cut to employees' wages, a reduction in health benefits, and a freeze in pension plan payments for more than two years. Under the plan, the company will also not pay $2 billion it owes to many of its creditors, including vendors.

Read the full story on CNN Money - "Twinkies maker has plan to emerge from bankruptcy: wage cuts"

Walt Disney Co. says it will set nutritional standards for the food advertisements on its networks aimed at children.

CEO Robert Iger announced the new policy at an appearance with First Lady Michelle Obama in Washington. The policy will apply to Disney Channel, Disney XD, Disney Junior, Radio Disney, and Disney-owned online sites oriented to families, effective by 2015.

"Parents tell us they need our support and we're listening," said Iger. "And as it turns out, doing the right thing for kids just happens to be a smart strategy for the Walt Disney Company and for its businesses - opening up new markets for us and building on our relationships with families."

Read - Disney to ban ads for junk food aimed at kids

Breakfast at Burger King is about to get more humane.

The nation's No. 2 fast food chain announced an agreement Wednesday with the Humane Society of the United States to switch to eggs from hens not kept in cages, and to only use pork products from pigs also not kept and bred in small cages.

While rivals McDonald's, Wendy's and other food-service companies already have policies or agreements with the Humane Society on the humane treatment of pigs, Wednesday's announcement was the first by a major chain that it would switch to cage-free eggs.

"What this does is send a clear message to these industries that their customers and the public don't want animals confined for their entire lives in cages. They will have to make changes," said Matt Prescott, food policy director for the Humane Society.

Read - Burger King to use eggs from cage-free hens

Previously - Egg-splained: Free-range, cage-free and organic

The maker of Twinkies and Wonder Bread heads to court Tuesday to try to throw out its union contracts, in a battle that leaves the iconic baker's future very much in doubt.

Hostess Brands, which makes Ding Dongs and a variety of other sweet treats, is asking the bankruptcy court in White Plains, N.Y. to tear up labor agreements, which would, among other things, allow Hostess to change how it funds union pensions. The hearing is expected to last two days.

The International Brotherhood of Teamsters and the Bakery, Confectionery, Tobacco Workers, together represent more than three-quarters of the 18,500 workers at the company.
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