ROANOKE TIMES

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

DATE: FRIDAY, March 12, 1993                   TAG: 9303120197
SECTION: BUSINESS                    PAGE: A-7   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: SALISBURY, N.C.                                LENGTH: Short


FOOD LION'S STOCK WOES HIT PROFIT-SHARING PLANS

The decline in Food Lion's stock last year has cost more than 3,000 employees money from their profit-sharing plans, the grocery store chain said.

Food Lion contributes an amount equal to 15 percent of the salary of each eligible employee into the plan each year. About 16 percent of the plan's holdings are in Food Lion stock.

Because the stock price slid much of the year and continued its drop after a critical TV news report in November that accused Food Lion of unsanitary practices, the total plan lost 9.2 percent of its investment last year, company spokesman Mike Mozingo said.

Because Food Lion contributes its usual 15 percent of salaries - a record $80 million - nine of out 10 of the plan's 30,084 employees still made money. The plan's worth rose from $431 million to $436 million.

The exceptions were part-timers who didn't work the required 1,000 hours in 1992 to get a company contribution in their names and employees who had so much in the plan already that the 9.2 percent loss more than offset the 15 percent salary contribution.



by Archana Subramaniam by CNB