People who prefer an unsweetened lunch drink
Plain still water keeps the choice straightforward. If you prefer fizz, the NHS suggests sparkling water as an alternative to still water.
Who is each type for?
The choice turns on whether you want plain water, fizz or fruit flavour—and which ingredients you want to avoid.
People who want fruit flavour without sugars
Check the exact variant rather than the brand alone. Volvic UK lists 0g sugars for Touch of Fruit Sugar Free Strawberry, while its standard Touch of Fruit Strawberry contains sugar and stevia.
People avoiding caffeine in a lunch drink
Check enhanced or focus-labelled drinks as well as flavoured waters. Buxton lists 75mg caffeine and 9.2g sugars per bottle for Peak FOCUS Lemon & Mint.
What should you check?
Choose the type of drink first, then check the exact flavour, nutrition panel and pack you plan to carry.
| Priority | What to check | Your needs |
|---|---|---|
| Plain or flavoured | Check whether the pack says plain still water, plain sparkling water or flavoured drink. Read the ingredients if you want to avoid flavourings or sweeteners. | I want water with lunch but need to decide whether I would rather have no flavour, fizz or a fruit flavour. |
| Sugars claim | Distinguish ‘sugar free’, ‘no added sugar’ and ‘low sugar’. For a zero-sugars preference, check the sugars value per 100ml and per serving on the exact pack. | Fruit flavour appeals to me, but I do not want to mistake a low-sugar drink containing sugar for a sugar-free one. |
| Other ingredients | Read the ingredient list for sweeteners and the label for caffeine and suitability warnings. Buxton lists 9.2g sugars and 75mg caffeine per bottle for Peak FOCUS Lemon & Mint. | I want an ordinary lunch drink, not an enhanced drink with ingredients I was not expecting. |
| Carry format | Check the individual container size, whether it reseals and how many containers come in the pack. Distinguish a bottle from a can if the format matters to you. | One container needs to fit into my lunch routine, even if I buy several at once. |
Common label and pack-size mistakes
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Reading ‘low sugar’ as ‘sugar free’
Volvic UK describes standard Touch of Fruit Strawberry as low sugar and sweetened with sugar and stevia. Its Sugar Free Strawberry variant is a different product with 0g sugars listed per 250ml serving.
Check the full variant name, ingredients and sugars figure rather than relying on the fruit flavour or brand name.
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Assuming every water-branded drink is plain water
Buxton lists 9.2g sugars and 75mg caffeine per bottle for Peak FOCUS Lemon & Mint. Its label also carries a high-caffeine warning.
If you want plain water, choose a pack labelled as such. For an enhanced drink, read its nutrition panel, ingredients and warnings before choosing it.
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Checking the multipack but not the individual container
A pack can contain conveniently sized drinks or a format you would not want to carry. The number of containers alone does not answer that question.
Check each bottle or can’s size and whether its closure suits how you carry lunch.
Brands and retailers to compare
Compare individual products and labels within these ranges; a brand name does not establish the ingredients of every flavoured variant.
Highland Spring
A spring-water brand to consider for plain still or sparkling lunch water.
- Highland Spring says its spring water comes from land in Scotland’s Ochil Hills.
- Check the particular pack rather than assuming a flavoured product has the same ingredients as plain water.
Evian
A plain still natural mineral-water option.
- Tesco’s Evian listing describes naturally occurring minerals, including calcium, magnesium and potassium.
- Check the container size and format against what you want to take to lunch.
Volvic
Includes plain water and flavoured variants that need to be distinguished by their full names.
- Volvic UK lists 0g sugars per 250ml serving for Touch of Fruit Sugar Free Strawberry.
- The sugar-free strawberry variant contains sweeteners; standard Touch of Fruit Strawberry contains sugar and stevia.
Buxton
Offers plain natural mineral water as well as enhanced flavoured drinks.
- Plain still or sparkling water offers a different choice from a flavoured enhanced drink.
- Buxton lists 9.2g sugars and 75mg caffeine per bottle for Peak FOCUS Lemon & Mint; check the exact product label.
Tesco
A retailer whose water range includes own-label still and sparkling natural mineral-water packs.
- Tesco lists British natural mineral water in still and sparkling 12 × 500ml formats.
- Use the individual product label when checking a flavoured drink’s ingredients and sugars.
Sainsbury's
A retailer with branded sugar-free flavoured-water listings and own-label flavoured options.
- Sainsbury's describes Volvic Touch of Fruit Sugar Free Strawberry as a 6 × 500ml flavoured-water pack with sweeteners.
- For an unfamiliar own-label flavour, check the pack’s nutrition panel and ingredient list before treating its front-of-pack wording as a zero-sugars claim.
Joybuy lunch-water options
These options cover plain sparkling water, sugar-free flavoured water and a plain still-water option in resealable cans. Choose by flavour and container format as well as the wording on the pack.
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San Pellegrino Sparkling Natural Mineral Water, 6 × 0.5L
A plain sparkling option if you want fizz with lunch. The pack contains six 0.5L bottles; choose still water instead if you do not want carbonation.
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Buxton Sparkling Water, 8 × 500ml
A plain sparkling choice for taking an individual 500ml bottle with lunch. This eight-pack suits a preference for fizz, not still water.
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Volvic Touch of Strawberry Sugar Free, 6 × 500ml
A strawberry-flavoured option when you want a sugar-free drink to carry with lunch. The pack contains six 500ml bottles and the product contains sweeteners, including sucralose and acesulfame K.
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Volvic Touch of Fruit Lemon & Lime Sugar Free, 6 × 500ml
A still, lemon-and-lime-flavoured choice if you prefer fruit flavour without a fizzy drink. It comes in six 500ml bottles and contains sweeteners, including sucralose and acesulfame K.
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Cano Water Still Resealable, 12 × 500ml
A plain still-water option for lunch if a can suits you. The pack contains twelve resealable 500ml cans rather than bottles.
Questions about lunch water
Does ‘no added sugar’ mean ‘sugar free’?
No. A no-added-sugar claim does not by itself tell you that a drink contains zero sugars. The Food Standards Agency states that when naturally occurring sugars are present alongside a no-added-sugar claim, the label must say so. If you want zero sugars, check the nutrition panel on the exact product.
Can I take plain sparkling water with lunch instead of still water?
Yes, if you prefer fizz and the pack is plain sparkling water rather than a flavoured drink with other ingredients. The NHS suggests sparkling water for people who do not like the taste of plain water.
What should I read on a flavoured-water label?
Check the sugars value, serving size and ingredients, then look for caffeine and any suitability warnings. Volvic UK lists 0g sugars per 250ml serving for Touch of Fruit Sugar Free Strawberry, which contains sweeteners; Buxton lists 75mg caffeine and 9.2g sugars per bottle for Peak FOCUS Lemon & Mint.