Nobody was talking.

The Watchdog team spent the week trying to crack the mystery of Bunsgate — bad buns that closed In-N-Out Burger for a couple of days and challenged sales at Raising Cane's and Whataburger.

A week later, The Watchdog remains troubled by the lack of transparency in this entire episode. The restaurant chains refused to give a full explanation of what happened, why and who was involved.

For some reason, it was — until now — a secret not seen since Coke hid its formula.

My colleague, Marina Trahan Martinez, and I spent the week calling bread suppliers, yeast-makers, bakeries, distributors and anyone we knew connected to the bread business. For most of the week, we got nowhere.

Public relations people for In-N-Out Burger, Raising Cane's and Whataburger declined to provide new information.

In this age of letting-it-all-hang-out transparency, it seems like an unnecessary secret.

You know what they say. The cover-up is usually worse than the crime.

Even In-N-Out, which promises on its "secret menu" page that it keeps no secrets — "In reality, we don't have any secrets at all" — is keeping this one a mystery.

The best explanation I heard came from a Raising Cane's cashier who sold me a 3 Piece Combo. (All this research made me very hungry.)

While taking my order, he told me the buns were "over-fermented" and "sour."

"They looked good, but when you opened the bag, it smelled," he said.

Raising Cane's declined to comment on the matter of bad buns. (File photo)

What happened to quality control? How did thousands of sour rolls get distributed to three restaurant chains operating in three states?

Officially, Raising Cane's declined to comment before our deadline.

In-N-Out won't say

In-N-Out spokeswoman Phyllis Cudworth declined to identify the supplier, except to say in an email that it's "a local provider in Texas who provides product for others."

So who is it?

In-N-Out: "We do not feel like kicking the provider when they are down. In the end, it was our decision to close and demand a quality product."

In-N-Out told The Watchdog it no longer works with the mystery supplier. Buns now come from a California bakery.

"We are actively working on selecting a local supplier to provide buns for us in the near future," Cudworth said.

Whataburger won't say

Whataburger spokeswoman Evgenia Sinopidou told us: "There was no health risk, rather a matter of bread quality with our white 5-inch and 4-inch buns and Texas Toast. An unbalance in the yeast threw off the taste and odor.

"Our team members and customers noticed the sour smell and taste over the weekend, so we pulled the bread immediately and worked with our supplier to correct the issue and deliver fresh bread. ... We've had a relationship with this bread maker for 35 years, and they have resolved the quality issue."

And the bread maker for Whataburger is ...

No answer.

Not Bimbo or Mrs. Baird's

By the middle of the week, we were getting closer. Nicole Lasorda, spokeswoman for Bimbo Bakeries and its subsidiaries including Mrs. Baird's, told me: "It is not us. We're not supplying any of those restaurants that were unable to open due to bad buns."

She said she knew the name of the company involved, but she declined to provide it.

Drat. Don't tease me.

Government not involved

Government food regulators had little interest. Food and Drug Administration spokesman Peter Cassell told me: "The FDA has checked with our colleagues at the Texas Department of State Health Services, and this doesn't seem to be a food safety issue, rather a quality issue. We will continue to monitor."

He added: "For more information, you do need to talk to the companies, likely the baker who supplies these stores."

Been trying, dude.

Big break

Finally, we got a break in the case. A tipster told me to check out Flowers Foods in Denton. I kept calling Johnny Oliver, the plant manager, but he wouldn't call me back. Marina tried him, too.

Then we found something. A confession of sorts sent by Flowers Foods to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. The filing was posted Wednesday on Flowers' website and sent to us by the company's PR rep.

The Georgia-based company has 47 bakeries, and Denton's location on Edwards Road is one of them. The company is 99 years old and lists almost $4 billion in annual sales. Because its stock is traded on the New York Stock Exchange, the company is obligated by law to report any negative events that affect operations.

Like this one.

Buns rolling through a Flowers Foods bakery showing how buns are produced. This scene is from a company promo video on YouTube.

The company stated that it received several shipments of "inferior yeast."

"While the supplier has confirmed that the inferior yeast used in the baking process is safe for consumption, customers and consumers have reported instances of unsatisfactory product attributes, primarily involving smell and taste."

Flowers reported that the cause of the bad yeast had been determined and that an alternate supplier of yeast had been found.

Who is this yeast maker? We called several prominent yeast manufacturers, but they didn't call back.

It bothers The Watchdog that this information was so difficult to track down. In today's world, companies must be forthcoming and honest in order to thrive. Ask Chipotle or Blue Bell about that.

There's no reason to protect a loyal baker or a bad yeast maker.

Mistakes happen. Tell us why. If you don't, it makes the situation worse.

Staff writer Marina Trahan Martinez contributed to this report.

Food problems?

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration urges consumers who may have experienced a health problem from a food product to contact the federal agency.

The number for Texans is 855-630-2112.

An online complaint form can be found at fda.gov.

Buns roll through a Flowers Food bakery, as shown in this company promotional video.

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Watchdog Dave Lieber of The Dallas Morning News is leader of Watchdog Nation, which shows Americans how to stand up for themselves and become super consumers.