You might think Ribena is a healthy drink to put in your kid’s lunchbox especially if you had it when you were a kid and your mother said it was good for you. But the major ingredients in Ribena are water and sugar, blackcurrant juice comes a very poor third at only 5% (and even then it’s a processed product made from concentrate).

 

Any product that’s called a ‘fruit drink’ is best avoided. Under the Food Standards Code ‘fruit drinks’ need contain no more than 5% fruit (so Ribena just meets the bare minimum standard) but unlimited sugar is allowed. ‘Fruit juice’ on the other hand, can’t be diluted with water and manufacturers are restricted to adding no more than 4% sugar.

Kids don’t really need any fruit juice or other sweet drinks to have a balanced and healthy diet. Water to drink with a piece of real fruit is a better and more filling.