I have in my hands at this moment a package of Twinkies that is AT ITS NEWEST, from 2011, but I believe I’ve had them since our office moved so I’m pretty sure they’re more like 15-16 years old (don’t ask, this is from a guy (me) who has a 1927 Maytag washing machine engine out in our shop).
It does NOT contain TBHQ, Sorbic Acid is the :freshness retainer.
They still look like twinkies, no discoloration.
I believe their Mohs hardness scale rating would permit me to chock my truck tires with them...
I would probably crush and dissolve them in boiling water and eat them if I’d not eaten to the point of being under 10% body fat and I couldn’t find any mammalian or avian critters that I knew hadn’t been feeding on city crap in the ‘pack-o-lips.
That is funny! Send it to the Smithsonian. It’s an antique.
Petey