INNOVATION

Trial: Naked Label-Less Sprite Bottle

We’re temporarily removing our labels to help simplify the recycling process.

sprite label less bottle

We're going naked, for now. 

In a short UK trial, we’re stripping off the labels from our Sprite bottles to help simplify the recycling process. These new trial bottles will feature an embossed logo on the front of the pack and laser-engraved product information on the back. And just like our existing bottles, they come in clear, 100% recycled plastic* with an attached cap.

(*) the bottle, not the cap

But how does being naked help?

Stripping off feels good. By removing the labels, we remove the need to separate them from the bottles during the recycling process. 

While existing labels are fully recyclable, stripping them off helps to reduce the amount of packaging material used overall.

It’s clear that the world has a packaging waste problem, and we have a responsibility to help solve it. Finding new ways to evolve our bottle design, make recycling simpler and reduce waste are important ways we aim to minimise the impact of our packaging on the environment.

sprite label less bottle

More than just a label

Trialling label-less is just a small step, but alongside existing changes made to our Sprite bottles, like making our 500ml Sprite bottles from recycled plastic*, removing green colour from our plastic bottles and keeping our caps attached, we’re looking to make positive change. We are also investing in new designs to reduce the amount of packaging we use (read more here), creating lightweight bottles (read more here) and reducing the materials we use when we’re packing up and sending out to stores (read more here).

Through our ambitious World Without Waste strategy, we want to reduce the amount of packaging we use (read more here), by focusing on new innovations (rPET, removal of coloured PET bottles, light-weighting, attached caps, etc), and by collecting and recycling one bottle or can for each one we sell, by 2030. See our progress here.

(*) the bottle and the label, not the cap

How to get your hands on one

Head down to one of twelve Tesco Express Stores in Brighton, Bristol, London or Manchester, from January to March 2024, and you will see the labels temporarily removed from 500ml Sprite and Sprite Zero bottles. Their coloured caps will help tell them apart (Sprite has a green cap and Sprite Zero has a transparent cap with a black tint) and their same great taste is guaranteed.

sprite label less bottle