Choose a case of squash bottles if you can provide drinking water, measure the dilution and serve it in cups. If each customer needs an unopened drink with no preparation, choose a ready-to-drink beverage instead: a multipack of squash concentrate is not a multipack of ready-to-drink cans. Before buying refreshments to sell, check the organiser’s rules and ask the relevant local authority whether your activity needs food-business registration.
Squash concentrate suits a stall with drinking water, a way to measure and serve the mixture, and access to the original packaging for product information. If you are selling the drinks, check the organiser’s conditions and ask the local authority whether registration applies to your activity.
If there is no practical water and mixing setup, look for a packaged drink labelled ready to drink. Retail listings from Tesco and Sainsbury’s describe the squash examples here as bottles or small concentrates, not individual ready-to-drink cans.
Check whether you are simply taking part in an occasional private sale or buying refreshments specifically to resell. Business Companion identifies regular selling and buying goods for resale as indicators of trader status in England and Wales; the event organiser and local authority can clarify the conditions relevant to your stall.
Decide first whether you can mix and serve drinks at the stall or need sealed individual portions. Then check the preparation instructions, pack quantity and information customers may need.
Choose when: You can supply drinking water, measure the mixture and serve it in cups.
Trade-off: A case of bottles gives you concentrate to prepare, not sealed, ready-to-drink portions.
Choose when: The person preparing each drink has water and can follow the mini bottle’s instructions.
Trade-off: The small bottle is still concentrate; the Robinsons mini label says not to drink it undiluted.
Choose when: Customers need unopened individual drinks without water or mixing at the stall.
Trade-off: This means choosing a different beverage category rather than assuming a can contains ready-to-drink squash.
| Priority | What to check | Your needs |
|---|---|---|
| Serving format | Check whether the pack contains concentrate or ready-to-drink portions. For the Robinsons double-strength orange bottle listed by Waitrose, the instruction is one part concentrate to nine parts water; Kitwave Retail lists a six-pack of 1.75L bottles, not cans. | I can set up water, measuring equipment and cups, or I need each drink sealed and ready to hand over. |
| Product information | Read the current label for ingredients, allergens and preparation warnings. Keep the original packaging available if you open bottles and serve drinks in cups. | Customers should be able to check what is in a drink and how a concentrate must be prepared. |
| Stall requirements | Check the organiser’s rules before buying stock. Ask the relevant local authority whether the way and frequency with which you sell or prepare drinks requires food-business registration. | If I am buying drinks to resell, I need to establish which requirements apply to my stall rather than assume an occasional event is exempt. |
The Robinsons 66ml mini label says not to drink it undiluted. The double-strength orange bottle listed by Waitrose specifies one part concentrate to nine parts water.
Check the preparation instructions before ordering. If you cannot provide water and mixing equipment, choose a product explicitly sold as ready to drink.
A 66ml squash mini still needs water and measured preparation; Sainsbury’s describes one squeeze of its Robinsons mini as an addition to a glass of water.
Decide who will prepare each drink and compare the number of bottles or cans in the pack with the portions you expect to serve.
GOV.UK and Food Standards Agency event guidance says supplying food can make an activity a food business, depending on the circumstances. For England and Wales, Business Companion also identifies buying goods for resale or selling regularly as indicators of trader status.
Check the event rules and contact the relevant local authority before buying refreshments to resell, particularly if you plan to prepare or pour them.
Removing the packaging can make ingredients and preparation warnings harder to check at the serving point.
Keep the original bottles and labels accessible, and use the current packaging when answering questions about ingredients or allergens.
These references help distinguish squash formats for a mixing setup; they are separate from the ready-to-drink Joybuy products below.
Retail listings from Tesco, Sainsbury’s and Waitrose include larger squash bottles and 66ml concentrates.
Tesco Groceries lists own-label quadruple-strength orange squash in 750ml and 1.5L bottles.
M&S describes bottled squash ranges intended to be mixed with still or sparkling water.
These canned soft-drink multipacks are options for a car boot stall that needs individual drinks without diluting squash. They are different beverages, not squash cans.
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A 12-can ready-to-drink soft-drink pack for individual portions without on-site dilution. This is not squash; check the current packaging for ingredients and serving guidance.
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A 24-can lemonade pack for serving individual drinks without mixing. It is not squash; the product information lists sweeteners and a source of phenylalanine, so keep the current label available for customers to check.
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A four-can fizzy soft-drink pack that needs no squash dilution. It is not squash; compare the four-can quantity with the number of drinks you expect to serve and check the current ingredient label.
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A 24-can ready-to-drink cola pack for individual portions. It is not squash; the product information lists caffeine and sweeteners, so check the current label before serving.
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A 24-can carbonated apple soft-drink pack for serving without dilution. It is not squash; the product information lists sweeteners, so keep the current packaging available for ingredient checks.
No: follow the instructions for the particular concentrate. Sainsbury’s Robinsons 66ml mini listing says not to drink it undiluted and instructs users to add a squeeze to water; Waitrose specifies one part concentrate to nine parts water for its Robinsons double-strength orange bottle.
It depends on what you do and how often you do it. GOV.UK and Food Standards Agency guidance for England, Northern Ireland and Wales says supplying food at an event may make you a food business and may require registration; ask the local authority where you plan to trade. Check Scottish requirements with the relevant Scottish authority rather than assuming the same guidance applies.
Yes, keep the original packaging accessible so customers can check ingredients and preparation warnings. GOV.UK and Food Standards Agency event guidance recommends retaining packaging to help people check food information when refreshments are supplied.
No. GOV.UK and Food Standards Agency guidance distinguishes prepacked food from drinks prepared or served without packaging, and the information requirements depend on how the product is supplied. If you plan to mix drinks at the stall or package them yourself before customers choose them, check the applicable allergen and labelling requirements with the relevant local authority before service.