In the Netherlands, Lipton Ice Tea, a leading global ice tea brand, has made the decision to switch to SIG aseptic carton packs with SIGNATURE FULL BARRIER packaging material, where all the polymers used are linked to certified forest-based renewable materials via a mass-balance system. This decision by Lipton Ice Tea, a Unilever brand, is an important step and contributes to the bigger Unilever sustainability goal of becoming fully net zero by 2039. The switch to SIGNATURE FULL BARRIER is also a significant step forward on Lipton’s commitment to contributing to the circular economy and becoming a fully circular brand.

Lipton has been appreciating the benefits of SIG aseptic carton packs in the Netherlands for many years and its ice tea will now use carton packs with SIGNATURE FULL BARRIER from May 2022. With around 20 million packs sold yearly, this important next step matches the brand’s strong sustainable ambition and meets the demands and expectations of Dutch retailers and consumers.

Lipton, who is committed to using the most sustainable packaging solutions, has chosen SIG’s combifitMagnum 1,500 ml carton pack with SIGNATURE FULL BARRIER. Carton packs with SIGNATURE FULL BARRIER reduce carbon footprint compared to a standard pack*, as a result of the substitution of fossil polymers with mass-balanced plant-based polymers made from tall oil – a by-product of paper manufacturing. All three key raw materials come from certified responsible sources via mass-balance systems: paperboard is from FSC™-certified forests and other controlled sources; forest-based renewable polymers certified according to ISCC PLUS; and an ultra-thin layer of aluminium which protects against light and oxygen is covered by ASI (Aluminium Stewardship Initiative) certification.

^*Results based on ISO-compliant life-cycle assessment CB-100732c: https://cms.sig.biz/media/4440/sig_lca_signature_addendum-combiswift-plus.pdf

Last year’s hot summer boosted UK water drinks consumption by more than 7 % to 4,267 million litres, according to a new report from food and drink experts Zenith Global. This was worth an estimated £ 3,330 million at retail prices.

Sales of plain bottled water in retail packs increased by 7.9 % to 3.4 billion litres, whilst sales of flavoured, functional and juicy waters rose by 7.2 %.

A key driver behind the growth was the warmest summer on record, according to the Met Office. The new soft drinks levy from April 2018, on products with a higher added sugar content, appears to have had a limited impact, after most manufacturers pre-emptively reformulated many products to avoid the tax.

Pressure undoubtedly increased on producers to improve their environmental profile. For the first time, the report documents packaging innovations such as recycled content as well as examining initiatives in recycling and deposit return schemes.

Zenith Global predicts that the UK market will continue to grow robustly, but at a slower pace than in recent years. “Our forecasts to 2023 show an upward trend of 3 – 5 % a year,” commented Zenith Global Senior Consultant Robin Bell. “Debate about plastic and recycling are likely to remain centre stage and we expect to see more packaging from alternative materials becoming mainstream,” he concluded.