Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: WEDNESDAY, June 16, 1993 TAG: 9306160329
SECTION: BUSINESS PAGE: B8 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: SANDRA BROWN KELLY
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
"Whitewheat" bread.
It has the taste and texture of white bread but more fiber, calcium, iron and riboflavin than white or whole-wheat bread, according to its maker, Flowers Family Bakeries Inc. The Thomasville, Ga., company operates distribution facilities in Roanoke.
The new bread is as '90s as a product can be. The white wrapper has a label touting the bread as 97 percent fat-free. It also carries nutrition information and a bar chart that compares Whitewheat bread ingredients with plain, old white bread.
Whitewheat is supposed to satisfy parent and child. It's designed to overcome a parent's perception that wheat bread is better than white and a kid's belief that peanut butter and jelly on wheat will taste like mud.
It rolled into Western and central Virginia on May 6, but has been around other areas for a couple of years, said Jackie Forrest, president of Flowers Baking Co. of Lynchburg.
Rolled is the right description for its mode of arrival. Its television commercials portray white and wheat bread loaves as train cars on a collision course.
"One is chugging white, white, white and the other is chugging wheat, wheat, wheat," said Mary Krier, Flowers' manager of communications.
Then the loaves do this fun crash.
Whitewheat is Flowers' answer to Rainbo Bread Co.'s Iron Kids product. The two were displayed side by side in at least one local grocery store.
The two products have similar nutrition stats, except Iron Kids has 35 milligrams of potassium and Whitewheat 60 milligrams. Iron Kids has one less gram of dietary fiber.
The Whitewheat that comes into this area is baked at Flowers in Lynchburg, which is one of 36 businesses the Georgia company operates in 16 states. Flowers Industries, which had gross sales of $879.2 million in fiscal 1992, also makes Nature's Own, Cobblestone Mill, Breads International and Sunbeam breads; Jubilee, BeeBo, Our Special Touch and Broad Street bakery products; and Stilwell frozen vegetables and fruit.
\ Wal-Mart Stores Inc. continues to creep open for longer stretches. The Roanoke-area stores don't appear slated for 24-hour operation, but after July 4, Sunday hours will be stretched to 9 a.m.-9 p.m. Sunday hours now are 10-7 and Monday-to-Saturday hours are 7-11.
Most 7-Elevens are operating 24 hours a day and more than 100 Wal-Mart stores are, too, including two in the Richmond area, one in Winchester and one in Virginia Beach.
\ Coming next to 7-Elevens will be automatic teller machines. The company already has the machines in some of its markets and is continuing to add them. There's no timetable for when the ATM facilities will be added in Western Virginia stores.
by CNB