Reason for snack cake disposal unclear

PORTLAND, Ore., June 3 (UPI) -- Oregon officials and a snack cake manufacturer blame each other for 2,000 snack cakes being sent to a landfill following an accident.

The (Portland) Oregonian reported Tuesday both McKee Foods and the Oregon Department of Transportation refuse to accept the blame for the destruction of the snack cakes from a truck involved in a traffic accident Monday.

ODOT spokeswoman Christine Miles insists McKee Foods ordered the snack cakes to be disposed of after they were removed from Oregon 217 following the overturning of a Little Debbie truck.

"With the Oregon Food Bank having a hard time getting food for the poor, it just seemed like a big waste," Miles said. "There was nothing wrong with the boxes."

But Chris Sullivan, a McKee Foods Corp. safety and compliance manager, told the Oregonian ODOT officials were to blame for their response to the highway accident.

"Until they tore that trailer open, there was nothing wrong with the food," Sullivan said. "ODOT exposed it to the ground, dump trucks and a front loader."

Police allege the accident was caused by the vehicle's driver, who was not hurt in the crash, driving too fast while making a turn.