Lilt canned from shelves after 50 years

The popular summer drink will no longer be seen on supermarket shelves, but will now be known as Fanta Pineapple & Grapefruit, joining the company's other flavours like strawberry, grape, orange, and lemon.

The Grocer reported that Coca-Cola Europacific Partners (CCEP) said: "Keen Lilt fans may have spotted a gradual transition as the drink has made its way into the Fanta family over the past few months, with changes to its packaging and logo.

Coca's Cola's vice president of commercial development, Martin Attock, wants to reassure fans: 'Our main priority with this announcement is to reassure Lilt’s loyal fanbase that absolutely nothing has changed when it comes to the iconic taste of the drink they know and love.'

Starting tomorrow, the newly relabelled drink will be available for purchase in 330ml cans, 500ml bottles, and two-liter bottles.

Lilt was first introduced to the public in 1975 with the tagline "The Totally Tropical Taste." In the 1980s, Lilt's advertisements were famous for depicting the "Lilt man" delivering drinks to sunbathers on the beach. Later, in 1998, two British Jamaican women, Blanche Williams, and Hazel Palmer, became known as the "Lilt ladies" and starred in the company's advertisements.

Fanta was valued at £281 million by the end of 2022, which is more than 17 times the value of Lilt, which had sales of £15.6 million over the same period.