Choose plain sparkling water if you want to avoid both sugar and sweeteners: the Natural Source Waters Association says plain sparkling water contains no sugar. If you want a flavoured drink with festival food, check the exact pack’s ingredients and ‘of which sugars’ figure; ‘no added sugar’ does not mean no naturally occurring sugar or no sweeteners. Then choose between bottles for sharing and smaller individual servings.
If drinks will stay beside the food, larger bottles or multipacks may be easier to serve from than a collection of single portions. Decide whether plain water will suit the meal or whether you want to offer a flavoured option too.
Plain sparkling water is the straightforward choice. For a flavoured drink, read both the ingredients and nutrition panel: a no-added-sugar claim alone does not tell you whether it contains naturally occurring sugars or sweeteners.
Flavoured sparkling waters, juice-containing drinks and diet drinks can have different ingredients. Compare the exact variants rather than treating their no-added-sugar wording as a sign that they are alike.
Start with the kind of drink you want, then check its sugar and sweetener information before choosing a pack size for serving or carrying.
| Priority | What to check | Your needs |
|---|---|---|
| Sugar in the drink | Check the ‘of which sugars’ value on the exact pack, as well as any no-added-sugar claim. The Advertising Standards Authority explains that a no-added-sugars claim concerns what has been added; it does not establish that the finished drink contains no sugar. | I want to avoid added sugar, but I also need to know how much sugar the drink contains overall, particularly if it includes fruit juice. |
| Flavour and sweeteners | Read the ingredients for juice, flavourings and named sweeteners. Sanpellegrino describes Essenza as having zero sweeteners, while M&S lists sucralose in its Diet Pineapple & Grapefruit drink. | Fruit flavour matters to me, but I would choose a different drink if its sweetener ingredients did not suit my preference. |
| Serving format | Compare bottle volume and pack count. Highland Spring lists 500 ml, 1.5 L and 6 x 1 L sparkling-water formats; the smaller and larger bottles serve different carrying and sharing plans. | For a food table, I can pour from larger bottles. If people will take drinks with them, individual bottles are easier to hand out. |
| Handling and storage | Read the exact pack’s opening and storage directions. Consider where unopened drinks will be kept and how opened bottles will be stored during the event. | I need a serving plan that works where the food is being served, rather than leaving opened bottles without suitable storage. |
Juice can contribute naturally occurring sugars. M&S lists 6.6 g sugars per 100 g for its no-added-sugar Apple & Elderflower sparkling water, while Sanpellegrino says its Zero drinks contain naturally occurring sugar.
Use the front-of-pack claim as a starting point, then compare the ingredients and ‘of which sugars’ value on the drink you intend to buy.
No-added-sugar wording does not settle the sweetener question. M&S lists sucralose in its Diet Pineapple & Grapefruit drink; Sanpellegrino describes its separate Essenza range as having zero sweeteners.
If sweeteners matter to your choice, check the ingredients of the exact flavour and variant.
A larger bottle can be poured at a food table, but individual bottles are easier to distribute to people who will carry their drinks. Once opened, carbonated drinks may also have pack-specific storage directions.
Match bottle size to where people will drink it, and follow the opening and storage instructions on the pack.
Brand names alone do not identify a drink’s ingredients: compare the named product range and variant when choosing between plain water and flavoured drinks.
A plain sparkling-water option with several bottle and multipack sizes.
An own-label range with listed plain sparkling-water formats and a named no-added-sugar flavoured multipack.
Distinct plain-water, infused-water and fruit-drink ranges that should be compared by variant.
Fruit-style sparkling drinks with differing sugar figures and ingredients.
A plain carbonated mineral-water reference for shoppers comparing unflavoured drinks.
These Joybuy options are plain sparkling waters in packs of smaller individual bottles or larger bottles for sharing. If you want a flavoured no-added-sugar drink instead, compare its ingredients and nutrition panel separately.
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The six smaller bottles suit individual servings with festival food. This is plain mineral water rather than a fruit-flavoured drink.
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Eight individual bottles provide portions to hand out or carry. Choose this plain-water format when fruit flavour is not needed.
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The eight 500 ml bottles offer individual servings for guests who will take their drinks away from the food table. This is a plain sparkling-water option, not a flavoured drink.
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The 1 L bottles suit pouring plain sparkling water for a group. They are larger to carry individually than the 500 ml bottles above.
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Six 1 L bottles provide a plain sparkling-water format for serving several people. For drinks to carry individually, compare the smaller-bottle packs instead.
No. A drink can contain naturally occurring sugars even when it is labelled no added sugar. Sanpellegrino says its Zero range contains naturally occurring sugar, and M&S lists 6.6 g sugars per 100 g for its no-added-sugar Apple & Elderflower sparkling water. Check the exact drink’s ‘of which sugars’ value.
Not necessarily. M&S lists sucralose in its no-added-sugar Diet Pineapple & Grapefruit drink, while Sanpellegrino describes its separate Essenza range as having zero sweeteners. Read the ingredients on the flavour you intend to buy.
Larger bottles suit pouring drinks at a group food table; smaller bottles suit individual servings that people will carry. Highland Spring lists a 6 x 1 L pack as well as 500 ml bottles. Check the event’s container rules and your storage arrangements before choosing a format.