Here's How To Get Free Twinkies On National Twinkie Day

Wednesday, April 6, is National Twinkie Day. Yes, Twinkies get their own holiday in the United States, albeit a consumer-oriented one. Such marketing nonsense, however, will still net you a free package of cream-filled sponge cakes. As detailed in a press release, Hostess and Gopuff have partnered to deliver free two-packs of Twinkies to those who use the FREETWINKIES22 code at checkout on GoPuff (in areas serviced by the delivery app).

"Twinkies are a beloved snack brand and have been for generations," Christopher Balach, general manager of Hostess Brands, said. He could've added, "and aims to be for many more." As Marketing Dive recently covered, Hostess fell into bankruptcy in the early 2010s. During the pandemic, however, the company saw renewed success as people turned to the brand's sweets stuffed with cream and nostalgia. Could that mean that customers could be celebrating National Twinkie Day for decades to come?

Not everyone thinks Hostess will be able to maintain its Covid-era popularity. Paul Earle, an adjunct lecturer at Northwestern University's Kellogg School of Management, told Marketing Dive about the subject, "Sure, you can crush it during the pandemic where people are reflectively going back to very simple things that they know, but I wouldn't bet on it in the future." He believes that the ways companies tackle health, sustainability, and other important issues will become increasingly important to consumers in the long run. Ultra-processed Twinkies, in other words, may not fit in with these modern ideals.

However, despite stories about a still-intact, 40-year-old Twinkie, the Hostess product is not much more "unnatural" than other processed foods on the market, NPR points out. Hostess reminds customers that "Twinkies have a shelf life of only 45 days" (which is still longer than Lent), but there's actually only one official preservative in the recipe. Most of the ingredients are chemical compounds that go into recreating butter and eggs so the Twinkie retains its moist texture for a longer period. "Perhaps disappointing to foodies, it's mostly flour and sugar," "Twinkie, Deconstructed" author Steve Ettlinger told NPR. Bolstering that perspective is the account of a customer who found otherworldly-looking moldy Twinkies (unopened) in his basement eight years after buying them. All of that to say: If you do get free Twinkies this year, make sure to eat them within the 45-day deadline.