Relaunch of Kirin green tea PET bottles
Kirin Beverage Company Limited has renewed Kirin Nama-tea, including the contents, container and package design, and will launch the renewed product nationwide on Tuesday 26 April. The container and package design of Kirin Namacha Houjisencha will also be renewed. In addition, for the 555ml Kirin Nama-ocha, which is exclusively sold in vending machines, the R100 PET bottle, which is made from 100% recycled PET resin, will be introduced gradually over the course of the year to promote environmentally friendly initiatives.
Since its launch in 2000, Kirin Namaicha has gained popularity with a wide range of customers, cumulative sales of the Kirin brand of raw tea exceeded 9.7 billion bottles in 2021. In recent years, as the drinking scene for bottled green tea has expanded, customers have shown a preference for more refreshing and easier-to-drink beverages, says the company.
In addition, from 2021, the company has made the Namacha brand its environmental CSV (Creating Shared Value) flagship brand, expanding the introduction of recycled PET bottles made from 100% recycled PET resin (‘R100 PET bottles’) and launching label-less products. With the renewal of the brand, Kirin intends to further promote environmental initiatives, such as using new containers for Kirin Namaicha and Kirin Namaicha Houjisencha (525ml and 600ml) to promote shorter labels, and introducing R100 PET bottles for Kirin Namaicha (555ml).
While the contents of Kirin Namacha Houji Sencha will remain unchanged, the entire manufacturing process has been revamped in order to achieve the flavour and aroma as freshly picked tea leaves. Therefore, the heating and brewing temperature of the tea leaves has been completely reviewed in order to achieve a refreshing and easy to drink flavour.
Photo: Kirin Namacha and Kirin Namacha Houji Sencha (525ml and 600ml) have adopted new containers and shortened package labels. The amount of plastic used in the label is approximately 40% of that used in the conventional product and makes it possible to see the colour of the tea. The new container is a product of the Kirin Group’s Packaging Innovation Laboratory.
