The chief executive of Hostess Brands Inc. said that the troubled maker of Twinkies and Wonder Bread will immediately liquidate if union members do not sign on to the final labor deal it has offered them, Dow Jones Daily Bankruptcy Review reported on Friday. Gregory Rayburn, a restructuring professional who took the helm of iconic baking company earlier this year, said that a contingency plan is already in place to shut down operations and sell the company's brands, plants and other assets if members of its two biggest unions do not ratify the new contracts. Hostess last week announced that the Teamsters union, which represents 7,500 of Hostess's 19,000 employees, had agreed to vote on a proposal that calls for some "deep" concessions and contemplates the possible sale of Hostess's Merita bread and bakery business, based in the Southeastern U.S.
