Lipton Green Tea is one of the newest offerings of a company founded in 1870 by
Sir. Thomas Lipton. We can thank Sir Thomas for the development of individual tea bags that we now enjoy on a daily basis. Currently a part of the Unilever Corporation with other well known brands including Bertoli pasta sauce, Slim Fast diet products, Surf laundry detergent and Dove cleansing products, the Lipton Company has joined the current bandwagon of green tea proponents by offering bottled green tea drinks.

Now available in Regular (flavored with sugar) and Diet (with sugar substitute added), the Lipton Company has answered the challenge posed by the Snapple Company. Founded in 1972, Snapple began marketing bottled teas in 1987. Therefore, Lipton has faced stiff competition in its bid for the share of the bottled tea market. Another challenge posed by Snapple concerns the element of taste. Apparently, aspartame is the sugar substitute used by Lipton in its Diet Green Tea, while Snapple Diet Green Tea uses Splenda, thereby giving the consumer a more conventional “sugary” taste.

There are those who would discourage the use of either artificial sugar product. With the introduction of the next generation of brand name sweetening additives such as Truvia, many companies marketing a “diet” green tea may have to go back to the drawing board. The overwhelming demand for a sweet taste without calories and/or side effects will keep Lipton and Snapple developing new ways to serve their customers. There is no doubt that we will benefit from this “healthy” competition.