Pack sparkling apple juice only if your child’s school permits fizzy drinks; being 100% juice does not override its packed-lunch policy. If the school permits juice but not fizzy drinks, a measured serving of still apple juice is an alternative. Water or milk avoids the carbonation question where the school allows it.
Check the current packed-lunch policy before buying a fizzy drink for school. Grindon Infant School and Woodside School each prohibit fizzy drinks in their published policies, but your child’s school may word its rules differently.
Compare the amount your child would actually take to school. ASDA lists Appletiser in a 150ml can, while its Tropicana listing and Tesco’s Copella listing are 900ml cartons with stated 150ml servings that need measuring out.
Read the juice percentage and ingredients. ASDA lists Appletiser as 100% carbonated apple juice, whereas the M&S sparkling apple water listing contains 16% apple juice and the J2O Spritz Apple & Watermelon listing contains 10% apple juice.
Start with the school’s rules, then compare the drink itself and the amount that would go into the lunchbox.
Consider it: If the school explicitly permits fizzy drinks and you want apple juice in a carbonated format.
Bear in mind: A 100% juice label does not make a fizzy drink acceptable under a school policy that bans carbonation.
Consider it: If the school permits juice but excludes fizzy drinks.
Bear in mind: A larger carton needs portioning, and the opened carton must be stored according to its label.
Consider it: If you want a non-fizzy, non-juice drink that the school allows.
Bear in mind: Check the school’s accepted drinks rather than assuming its rules are the same as another school’s.
| Priority | What to check | Your needs |
|---|---|---|
| School policy | Check whether the current packed-lunch policy permits fizzy drinks, juice, water and milk. The Department for Education’s England guidance on school food concerns food and drink provided in state-funded schools; it does not establish permission for a home-packed drink. | I need a drink my child’s school will accept, including any rule that excludes fizzy drinks even when they contain fruit juice. |
| Serving and sugars | Compare sugars per 100ml with the amount you would pack. ASDA lists 10.5g sugars per 100ml for its 150ml Appletiser can; ASDA and Tesco each list 15g per 150ml for the Tropicana and Copella still juices. | A small-looking pack may contain more than the serving I intended. I want to check its volume and sugar declaration, not just its fruit-juice claim. |
| Drink type | Read the juice percentage and ingredient list, including any added sugar or sweetener. The ASDA Appletiser listing says 100% carbonated apple juice; M&S lists 16% apple juice in its sparkling apple water, and ASDA lists 10% apple juice in J2O Spritz Apple & Watermelon. | If I’m choosing apple juice, I don’t want to mistake an apple-flavoured sparkling drink for 100% juice. Either way, I still need to check the fizzy-drink rule. |
| Pack and storage | Check the can or carton size and the storage directions after opening. ASDA’s Tropicana 900ml listing says to refrigerate after opening and use within five days; Tesco’s Copella 900ml listing says to keep refrigerated and use within four days. | I may prefer a can to measuring from a carton, or I may be able to portion still juice at home and use the rest within its stated storage period. |
The Department for Education describes requirements for food and drink provided in state-funded schools in England. A school’s packed-lunch policy can separately prohibit fizzy drinks, as the published policies of Grindon Infant School and Woodside School do.
Read your child’s current packed-lunch policy or ask the school before packing a sparkling drink.
ASDA lists 10.5g sugars per 100ml for its Appletiser 150ml can. Its Tropicana listing and Tesco’s Copella listing each declare 15g sugars per stated 150ml serving.
Compare the sugars declaration with the amount you plan to pack. The NHS advises against having too much sugary food or drink because of tooth-decay risk.
M&S Sparkling British Apple Spring Water lists 16% apple juice plus sugar and acids. ASDA’s J2O Spritz Apple & Watermelon listing includes 10% apple juice, added sugar, acids and sucralose.
Check the product description, juice percentage and ingredients before comparing it with a 100% apple juice.
The Tropicana and Copella examples are 900ml cartons, although each gives nutrition information for a 150ml serving. Their opened-carton refrigeration and use-by instructions differ.
If you plan to use a carton for packed lunches, measure the serving into a suitable clean container and follow the carton’s storage directions.
These product-line examples show why carbonation, juice percentage and pack format matter; a brand name alone does not establish what a school permits.
ASDA lists a 150ml can of 100% carbonated apple juice from concentrate.
ASDA lists Tropicana Pressed Apple Fruit Juice as a still 900ml carton with a stated 150ml serving.
Tesco lists Copella Apple Juice as a still, not-from-concentrate juice in a 900ml carton.
M&S Sparkling British Apple Spring Water is an apple-containing fizzy drink, not 100% apple juice.
ASDA lists J2O Spritz Apple & Watermelon as a mixed sparkling fruit drink rather than 100% apple juice.
This option is for the sparkling-apple-juice route, not the still-juice or non-juice routes. Check the school’s fizzy-drink rule and the can size before choosing it for a packed lunch.
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Consider this for a packed lunch only if the school permits fizzy drinks. The listed pack contains six 250ml cans of lightly sparkling 100% apple juice.
One can holds 250ml. Barnsley Metropolitan Borough Council’s packed-lunch toolkit advises limiting fruit juice to 150ml a day, so check the amount you intend to pack and the can’s sugars declaration.
Only if your child’s school permits fizzy drinks in packed lunches. Grindon Infant School and Woodside School prohibit them in their published policies; check your own school’s current policy rather than assuming that a 100% juice drink is allowed.
Not necessarily. ASDA lists its 150ml Appletiser can as 100% carbonated apple juice, while M&S Sparkling British Apple Spring Water lists 16% apple juice and ASDA’s J2O Spritz Apple & Watermelon lists 10%. Read the specific drink’s juice percentage, ingredients and sugars declaration.
ASDA’s listing for the 150ml Appletiser can says that it represents one of five a day. That label statement does not determine whether your child’s school permits fizzy drinks; check the packed-lunch policy separately.
Barnsley Metropolitan Borough Council’s packed-lunch toolkit advises limiting fruit juice to 150ml a day because of its sugar content. This is local-authority guidance, not permission to take juice to every school. Check the school policy and the volume of the pack you would use.
Follow the directions on the carton you buy. ASDA’s Tropicana 900ml listing says to refrigerate after opening and consume within five days; Tesco’s Copella 900ml listing says to keep refrigerated and consume within four days of opening.