Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: SUNDAY, February 10, 1991                   TAG: 9102100165
SECTION: VIRGINIA                    PAGE: C6   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: ABINGDON                                LENGTH: Medium

U.S. SACK-PACKING RANKING WAS IN THE BAG FOR TEEN

White won the National Grocers Association's state competition and recently finished eighth out of 27 contestants in the national contest in New Orleans.

"It's harder than most people thought," White, 18, said of the "Best Bagger" competitions.

The senior at Abingdon High School has been working for seven months at a Food City store. The Jan. 30 New Orleans competition came only after three other grueling in-store, district and state tournaments.

Food City management approached White last fall about entering an in-store tournament. He won that contest, landing him a spot in the district tournament.

After bagging 11 competitors in the district meet, he headed to Richmond, where he won the chance to represent Virginia against 26 other state finalists in the national competition.

Criteria for judging the national competition included speed, proper bagging techniques, number of bags used, distribution of weight between bags and personal style, attitude and appearance.

Proper bagging techniques involve placing heavy cans on the bottom, framing boxed items around the walls to create a cushion for other items, placing glass-enclosed groceries in the center and placing crushable items on the top.

White plans to compete in the bagging contests again next year. For this year's efforts, he received a $500 scholarship to the college of his choice and $500 in cash for winning the state title. The winner of the national contest took home a $5,000 scholarship and $1,000 in cash.

While White is a good bagger, he doesn't plan to make a career out of it. He plans to major in computer science at Virginia Highlands Community College.