For a summer picnic, choose bottled squash if you can bring drinking water and cups; choose ready-to-drink multipack cans if unopened individual portions matter more than avoiding the extra finished-drink volume. Tesco Groceries lists bottled concentrates in its squash category and canned packs in its separate multipack soft-drinks category, so check the drink format rather than assuming a can is squash. Squash and cans can also serve different people at the same picnic.
The deciding question is whether your group can prepare and share a concentrate, or needs drinks that are individually ready to open.
Bottled squash is an option when you have drinking water and something to serve it in. The Robinsons and Vimto products listed by Waitrose & Partners each state 20 servings and directions to dilute one part concentrate with four parts water; check the directions on the bottle you buy.
Ready-to-drink multipack cans avoid mixing and separate cups. They are a different type of drink from the bottled concentrates shown in Tesco Groceries’ squash category, so choose the actual drink as well as the pack format.
No-added-sugar wording does not mean a squash contains no sweeteners: the Robinsons and Vimto examples listed by Waitrose & Partners include them. Read the label on the pack being served for its ingredients and allergen information.
Choose it when: You can take drinking water and cups and want to prepare drinks for a group.
Plan for: Dilution and serving at the picnic; a concentrate is not an individual ready-to-drink can.
Choose them when: Each person needs an unopened portion without mixing or carrying preparation water.
Plan for: Carrying the finished drink and its individual containers; check the contents rather than assuming a soft drink matches your usual squash.
| Priority | What to check | Your needs |
|---|---|---|
| Preparation | Check whether the drink needs diluting or is ready to drink. For concentrate, check the pack directions and what water and cups you will bring. | I want to open individual drinks straight away, or I can make up squash once we arrive. |
| Portions | For squash, compare stated servings and dilution directions, not bottle volume alone. For cans, check the number and size of the individual drinks. | Will there be enough for the group, and do people need their own unopened portions? |
| Ingredients | Read the exact pack’s ingredient and allergen information. Waitrose & Partners lists sweeteners in its Robinsons and Vimto no-added-sugar squash examples. | If someone has an ingredient-specific requirement, I need to check the pack that will actually be served. |
| Picnic storage | Plan space for drinks without displacing food that needs chilling. The Food Standards Agency advises using a cool box or bag with ice or frozen gel packs for foods normally kept refrigerated; frozen drinks can also help keep a cool box cold. | I’m bringing chilled picnic food as well as drinks, so it needs its own suitable cold storage. |
Concentrated squash needs water and a way to serve it; the bottle alone will not provide individual drinks at the picnic.
Choose concentrate after planning the water and cups, or choose a ready-to-drink multipack when no preparation is the priority.
A bottle’s volume is not its finished-drink volume. The Robinsons and Vimto examples listed by Waitrose & Partners state 20 servings and a one-part-concentrate-to-four-parts-water dilution ratio.
Check the particular bottle’s directions and stated servings, then allow for the drinking water you will need to carry.
The no-added-sugar Robinsons and Vimto examples listed by Waitrose & Partners contain sweeteners. A front-of-pack description cannot replace the full ingredient and allergen information.
For an allergy, intolerance or ingredient-specific requirement, read the label on the exact pack before serving it.
Drinks may share a cool box with picnic food, but food that normally needs refrigeration still needs to be kept cool.
Follow the Food Standards Agency’s picnic guidance: use a cool box or cool bag with ice or frozen gel packs for those foods. Frozen drinks can help keep a cool box cold, but do not replace that plan.
These examples help distinguish bottled concentrates from multipack cans; they do not indicate which products a particular shop has in stock.
A bottled squash example for picnics where drinking water and cups are available.
Another bottled squash example for groups prepared to dilute and serve their drinks.
Tesco Groceries’ separate squash and multipack soft-drinks categories illustrate why the format needs checking.
A cordial reference for a picnic where still or sparkling water is part of the serving plan.
These 24-can soft-drink packs suit the no-mixing, individual-portion route. They are not squash: if you want a drink to dilute and share, use the bottled-concentrate checks above instead.
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For a picnic where people want individual ready-to-drink cola cans rather than squash to dilute. The pack contains 24 cans of 330 ml each; check the current pack ingredients if sweeteners or caffeine matter to your group.
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For individual portions of ready-to-drink original-taste cola without bringing mixing water. The pack contains 24 cans of 330 ml each; this is cola, not concentrated squash.
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A ready-to-drink cola option when individual portions and the Zero Sugar variant are wanted. The pack contains 24 cans of 330 ml each; check the pack ingredients for any ingredient-specific requirements.
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An apple-flavoured, ready-to-drink option for a picnic that calls for individual cans rather than squash to mix. The pack contains 24 cans of 330 ml each; check the current label for ingredients.
Check the product format rather than treating “squash” and “cans” as interchangeable. Tesco Groceries lists bottled concentrates in its squash category and canned drinks in its separate multipack soft-drinks category. If unopened individual cans are essential, look at ready-to-drink drinks and check what each pack contains.
Follow the directions on the bottle you buy. The Robinsons and Vimto examples listed by Waitrose & Partners each specify one part concentrate to four parts water and state 20 servings; plan drinking water and cups around the servings you intend to make.
It can: the no-added-sugar Robinsons and Vimto squash examples listed by Waitrose & Partners both include sweeteners. Read the physical pack’s ingredient and allergen information if someone has a specific requirement.
Prioritise suitable cold storage for picnic food that normally needs refrigeration. The Food Standards Agency advises a cool box or cool bag with ice or frozen gel packs for such food and notes that frozen drinks can help keep a cool box cold.
Keep food that normally needs refrigeration in a cool box or cool bag with ice or frozen gel packs. The Food Standards Agency says that, in extremely hot weather, food that has been out of the fridge should be used within two hours.