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

DATE: TUESDAY, September 13, 1994                   TAG: 9409140064
SECTION: BUSINESS                    PAGE: C-8   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: 
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Medium

IN BUSINESS

Trigon Blue Cross/Blue Shield said Monday it has been named the top Federal Employee Program administrator among 66 such Blue Cross plans nationwide. The award was made by the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association.

The company's staff, which is based in Roanoke, administers the government health plan for 204,000 federal employees and dependents who live or work in the state. That makes it the fourth-largest Federal Employee Program administrator in the country.

Earlier this year, the association recognized Trigon has one of 10 low cost, high performance administrators for the second straight year.

The Roanoke unit, led by Vice President Paul Keyser, employs more than 200 people.

- Staff report

Briefly ...

Flowers Industries Inc., Thomasville, Ga., manufacturer and distributor of bakery goods with distribution facilities in Roanoke, said Monday it has acquired Richter's Bakeries in San Antonio, Texas. Richter's, founded in 1882, operates four bakery facilities in San Antonio, Austin and Corpus Christi, Texas, and reported sales of $65 million in its latest fiscal year. Terms of the merger were not revealed.

Domestic coal production totaled 20.9 million tons during the week ending Sept. 3, down slightly from 21 million tons the previous week, the U.S. Department of Energy said Monday. The U.S. coal industry produced 18.4 million tons in the same week last year. Domestic coal production so far this year is 698 million tons, 9 percent ahead of last year's production at this time.

Earnings ...

Brendle's Inc., Elkin, N.C.-based retailer operating stores in Western Virginia, reported a net loss of $2.4 million, equal to 19 cents per share, for its second quarter ended July 30, compared with a net loss of $5.5 million, or 67 cents, a year earlier. Revenues were $32.8 million, down from $36.3 million a year ago.

For the first six months, net income was $22.4 million, or $2.12 a share, compared with a year-ago net loss of $10.1 million, or $1.22. Revenues were $58.8 million compared with $69.6 million.