Well, I remember that this very topic of discussion came up on here a couple of years ago without a news story to kick it off. My solution was to make your own easy quick hotdog buns so that you could match up the amount, or whatever the issue actually was back then. I even posted the recipe that my family enjoys to this day, in the form of hotdog, hamburger, or just plain old buns and caramel rolls like the Hutterites sold. (I'm still willing to share if someone is interested!)
I even found a recipe to make homemade frankfurters (weiners), probably very similar to the recipe mentioned in the link. It called for sheep casings for making them the correct size.
The frankfurters taste exactly the same as the bought without the strange chemical ingredients. It is amazing how many fantastic spices go into the old recipe to make them taste that way.
I went looking for a weiner recipe when my kids were younger because they wanted some to roast over a fire & a few of us couldn't have them due to a very bad reaction to the stuff that was in the bought ones, so bad that I didn't eat them for well over 10 years until they started using the "celery seed extract" in one brand. That's the only reason I have the recipe.
I got reamed right out & insulted by the grumpy OP for trying to share the bun solution that I thought could be helpful to them or someone else reading. I had said it was so easy even my 10 year old could make them, which I suppose was insulting? I was just proud of my kid and thrilled with the ease & speed of the recipe! It is almost foolproof. I think the OP had trouble with a lot of the replies if I remember correctly.
Anyway, I agree that this story is a nothing, filler news story, what I consider fluff. The TV news and papers always had those to fill up space either on air or in the the paper. It's nothing new. Notice the discussion it stirred and the people who are drawn to the site over it though. I'd say it did its job. That's all that really matters to the company. It is an interesting aside to everything going on, something very simple.
I think it's funny that a petition about the numbers of each actually got so many signatures.