European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - December 7, 1985, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Pages the stars and stripes saturday. December 7, 1985 commissary Purchase plan discontinued after test schools update pupils in England raise $2,300 for mexican quake victims by Ciuck Vinch h Ashington Bureau Washington the defense logistics Agency has scrapped its competitive acquisition program which Hud been launched to reduce prices in european Cammis Sarics after a test by the Agency s defense personnel sup porn ctr r. Officials decided to discontinue the program because they feared it would stifle the Power of Consumers to determine what products Are sold in commissaries and what their prices will be. We were afraid that we would be adding an unnecessary layer of red tape to the commissary  said maj. Fungus Jordan assistant director of personnel administration and services for Dod. He said the program was part of a plan to reduce commissary prices overseas. A report by the readiness  of the House armed services committee had said commissary prices for some products sold Over seas were As much As 15 percent higher than in stateside stores the competitive acquisition program allowed Small companies to make bids to commissary officials in an Effort to get their products on the shelves with the Low est bidder being awarded a six month contract. Jordan said the commissaries would retain the two or three major Brand names of a particular item. The companies thai represented the bulk of the mar Ket for a particular product would remain on the shelves und then the bidding would be done among the Compa Nies who made up the rest of the Market he said. One of the items tested was Margarine. Parkay and Blue Bonnet the biggest Sellers were retained for Sale in he commissaries. Three additional companies were solicited for bids with lever Brothers Imperial Margarine gelling the contract. The contract Price for Imperial was 50 cents per Pound while Blue Bonnet and parkay sold for about 62 cents per Pound. To a hot dogs to dinners and pot pies also were tested. Jordan said the commissary Board s main concern was that the program was affecting the promotional Money system used by manufacturers. Companies will lower their prices regularly in order to act a greater share of the Market Jordan said it you buy Brand x and i m Selling Brandy i have to find out Why you re not buying my Brand and do something to make my Brand More  Jordan said this is where the promotional Money comes in. Manufacturers of top Quality higher priced brands finance advertising campaigns and offer Dis counts to capture a larger share of the Market and drive other products off the shelves if possible. Military patrons arc a particularly lucrative Market because Many Servic members Are Young and just beginning to form Brand loyalties Jordan said. Manufacturers will offer prices in commissaries that arc sometimes far below prices in civilian supermarkets in order to get a service member to form a Brand loyalty and continue to buy the product even when he leaves the  he said. But under the competitive acquisition program the major companies would not hold sales or offer discounts he said. They Felt the Money would have been wasted since the company that had won the competitive bid was guaranteed commissary shelf space for six months. So in effect what it came Down to was that if you wanted to buy the product of the company that had won the competitive bid and offered the lower Price it was a orca  Jordan said. But the people with Strong Brand loyalties those who wanted to stay with parkay or Blue Bonnet for example were locked into a higher Price with no Chance of promotional sales or Dis counts. So the program was arguably restricting compe  Jordan said that under the program the Competition had moved from the commissary shelves to a contract officer s desk. The fastest Way to bring the Price of a product Down is for customers not to buy it. That s the Way we wanted it to slay. And because of a number of other factors prices were decreasing in overseas commissaries anyway so the program was put on Lipold  by Chuck Vinch Washington Bureau Washington the Marine corps scholarship foundation has Given 510,000 Treasury certificates to the families of three army men who were among the 241 Scricc members killed in the october 19x3 bombing of a Marine Barracks in Beirut. The  were Given to the widows of spec. 4 Marcus Coltman. Sgt. Daniel Kluck and Sec. James i Rhor said Peter Haas a retired Marine cd ser Geant major and president of the foundation. Haas said the  arc to finance College or vocational school for their children. The certificates will mature by the time the children reach 18. Haas a stockbroker in new York City said foun Dation scholarships usually go Only to he children of marines. But Beirut was a special situation he said. After the bombing people who knew of the foundation began sending unsolicited funds almost s300.000." most people sent $5 or $10, but one chinese Man who had fought with the marines in 1944 sent $5.000. And a former Navy Man sent in $25,000. Haas said. Haas said the $300,000 was combined Wilh other foundation funds and $1.2 million was a 3 Beirut victims widows Given Grants Iceland unit getting new Al 5cs Kef Lavik Iceland the 57ih fighter interceptor so Black knights will receive the last three of 18 new f 15c eagles in Early 1986 to provide air defense of Iceland and the Greenland Lee and United kingdom Gap. The unit officially converted to the eagles when the last of 12 f-4e phantoms left Iceland nov. 25. Fifteen eagles have arrived since july. The 51th fighter interceptor so is on Alert 24 hours a Day and can be in the air within 10 minutes after being  since 1954, the Squadron has intercepted about 2,000 unannounced soviet military aircraft. The number of intercepts now averages 140 a year. With the f-l5, the Squadron s pilots can Fly longer in an air plane generally considered the Best air to air fighter in Croughton England is pupils from the Croughton Middle school raised $2,300 wild a fund Rais ing run nov. 19 to Benefit pupils whose school in Mexico City was devastated by an earthquake. The run involved 290 sixth seventh and eighth Grade pupils and several of their parents and a achors who collectively ran and walked 1.160 Miles said Maureen Ford teacher and organizer of the fund Raiser. Each participant ran jogged or walked four Miles. The funds will go to the Green Gate school in Mexico City. She said Many pledges came from English residents of villages where the american youngsters reside. U.s., German students to hold concert to Aid Volcano victims Kaiserslautern More than 200 German and american High school students will present a concert dec. 12 to raise Money for victims of a recent Volcano eruption in Colombia. Choir band and German class study nos from Kaiserslautern High school will join Wilh counterparts at the gymnasium Nord the partner school of the american school to present the concert at 10 . Donations to the Christmas concert will be forwarded to disaster victims. High school in Bonn to Host symposium on future topics Bonn Bonn american High school will Host an International symposium for futures education dec. 18. Students and faculties from two High schools in the United states two German gymnasiums in Bonn two International schools in Germany and a department of defense dependents school in Belgium will participate in the symposium. Garlic Ipanis will discuss computer technology cities and housing transportation the military aviation acquired immune deficiency syndrome Post nuclear society and other topics. Guest speakers will talk about future developments in these areas. Given to some families of troops killed in the blast. The Money went to families whose incomes were s25.000 per year or less he said. The certificates ranged from $10,000 to s30.000 each he said. In some cases the children that the Money was meant for weren t even born yet the women were still  he said five soldiers were killed in the bombing and three of those had children. They were working with the marines on that i Sion and we were inure limn Nappy to help out their families he said. If something like Beirut happens again Well do the same thing for any service that has troops attached to the Marine  the certificates were passed to Gen. . Kelley Marine corps commandant who turned them Over to Gen. John a. Wickham army chief of staff. In a letter accompanying the certificates Kelley wrote we arc grateful for the support that the . Army gave us in Lebanon. These certificates arc a manifestation of a nation s outpouring of grief for those who were killed there. I add my personal Sor  Haas said the foundation has Given out about $3 million to the children of marines for College and vocational school since it was founded about 25 years ago. The free world said col Robert g. Jenkins commander of air forces Iceland. With the f-l5, the 57ih Fis can Row conduct productive training missions in Iceland and still have enough fuel to divert to Scotland of Norway if the weather at Kef Savikis unsuitable for Landing he said. Most of the people who flew or worked on the phantoms in Iceland have been transferred and replaced by person Nel who Are familiar with the Eagle officials said Wilh the increase of six planes More support facilities including housing arc planned for the naval air station at Kofla Vik. The phantoms were reassigned to tac air come units at George fab calif., and Seymour Johnson fab . World today 24% of British in new poll say Germany is Britain s Best Friend London a Germany is Brit sin s Best Friend in Eurott according to 24 percent of people questioned in a poll. But 39 percent of the 2,000 adults polled said none or Cap Tascu to Opidi Idun Wincn a Kucij Vjio is Britain s Cust Friend France with 12 percent was the Only other major euro Pean Power to reach double figures. The poll was taken for the German embassy. Dutch can withhold taxes to protest missile deployment Amersfoort Netherlands a for the flirt time Ever dutch householders Are being allowed to with hold taxes to protest government policy in this Case the nov. I decision to deploy cruise missiles. Since 1982, the National movement against taxes for defense has sponsored an initiative to withhold taxes to protest dutch and nato military policy. However no municipality allowed the tax protest until this Central dutch town ruled that such a move by its own residents would be allowed for humanitarian reasons City spokesman Ben Muller said. Manila mailman gets 16 years for not delivering 2 letters Manila Philippines a mailman Lucio Dolph has been sentenced to 16 years in prison for failing to deliver two letters the official philippine news Agency said. The news Agency said Dolph also was fined the equivalent of j53 and barred from Public office for 32 years. The 16-year prison sentence was the maximum under us charge against Dolph. The charge was infidelity in u custody of Public documents