Exhibit 99.1


                INGLES MARKETS, INCORPORATED RECEIVES NOTICE FROM
           NASDAQ REGARDING POTENTIAL DELISTING AND INTENDS TO APPEAL
           CLASS A COMMON STOCK WILL CONTINUE TO TRADE PENDING APPEAL


Asheville, NC - December 29, 2004 - Ingles Markets, Incorporated (NASDAQ:
IMKTA), today announced that on December 28, 2004, the Company received a notice
from the staff of The Nasdaq Stock Market indicating that the Company is not in
compliance with Nasdaq's requirements for the continued listing of its Class A
Common Stock due to the failure to timely file its Form 10-K for the period
ended September 25, 2004, as required under Market Place Rule 4310(c)(14).
Therefore, the Company's Class A Common Stock is subject to potential delisting
from The Nasdaq Stock Market. Receipt of the notice does not result in immediate
delisting of the Class A Common Stock.

The Company expects to make a timely request for a hearing with the Nasdaq
Listing Qualifications Panel to appeal the Nasdaq staff's determination. This
request will stay the delisting pending the hearing and a determination by the
Nasdaq Listing Qualifications Panel. There can be no assurance that the Panel
will grant the Company's request for continued listing.

The Form 10-K, for the period ended September 25, 2004, has been delayed pending
completion of a previously disclosed internal investigation and any related
restatement of the Company's financial statements related to fiscal years 2001
through 2004. The Company expects the investigation will be completed shortly
and is working diligently to complete the Form 10-K and any related filings.
Management believes that the Company may restate its financial statements for
certain of the periods under review primarily to move recognition of certain
vendor payments from earlier to later periods. Management does not believe that
the restatements will have any impact on cash flow and does not currently expect
the restatements will have a negative effect on the Company's results for fiscal
2004. The Company currently expects it will file its Form 10-K mid January,
2005. Accordingly, as previously disclosed, the referenced financial statements
should not be relied upon until such time as the Company files its restatements.

This release contains forward-looking statements, which reflect management's
current views of future events and operations, including, but not limited to,
statements pertaining to restatements of its financial statements. These
forward-looking statements involve certain significant risks and uncertainties,
and actual results may differ materially from the forward-looking statements.
Some important factors which may cause results to differ include: dependence on
the import of any relevant facts presently unknown to Ingles' management,
discovery of additional issues in completing the Company's Form 10-K, whether a
related SEC inquiry becomes a formal investigation and the ultimate resolution
of the SEC's inquiry. Other important factors that may cause actual results to
differ materially from the forward-looking statements are discussed from time to
time in Ingles filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Ingles does
not undertake to publicly update or revise any of its forward-looking statements
even if experience or future changes show that the indicated results or events
will not be realized.

Ingles Markets, Incorporated is a leading supermarket chain with operations in
six southeastern states. Headquartered in Asheville, North Carolina, the Company
operates 197 supermarkets. In







conjunction with its supermarket operations, the Company also operates 74
neighborhood shopping centers, all but 17 of which contain an Ingles
supermarket. The Company's Class A Common Stock is traded on The Nasdaq Stock
Market's National Market under the symbol IMKTA. For more information about the
Company, visit Ingles' website at www.ingles-markets.com.