Wine trade shaken up by pouches and PET

Further developments in the autumn will include the Aussie wine brand Banrock Station in Tetra Pak cartons and other branded PET bottles and foil pouches.

The Arniston Bay White and Rosé are being introduced in 1.5-litre pouches, with a retail price of £9.49, and 250ml single-serve pouches will be introduced to the trade shortly.

Brand owner The Company of Wine People said the packaging format was designed to appeal to younger wine drinkers and to broaden the usage occasions. It also appealed to consumers concerned with the environment as the pouch has 80% less of a carbon footprint than the equivalent glass bottle.

Jason Godley, category wine manager at Tesco, said: “We have set ourselves challenging targets to reduce packaging waste and reduce our overall carbon footprint.

“The Arniston Bay pouch is a great example of the innovation we need from our suppliers to contribute to meeting these targets,” he said.

Sainsbury's has introduced two own-label wines in PET bottles, a New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc and an Australian rosé. Sainsbury's said moving wine from glass to PET could help it meet its target of reducing its CO2 emissions by 25% by 2012.

SOURCE: Checkout August 2007