HARROGATE Spa Water has won a prestigious international award for its "bag-in-box" packaging format designed to increase water consumption in the home.

The company is celebrating success at the bottledwaterworld Design Awards in Paris, where it won the "best alternative packaging" award.

The awards, organised by a leading industry magazine, attracted entries from as far a field as America, Australia, Saudi Arabia, Hong Kong and Malaysia.

Harrogate Spa Water, Britain's original spa water, was short-listed alongside competitors from Portugal and Belgium in the alternative packaging category.

Harrogate Spa's bag-in-box, the first packaging of its kind on the UK bottled water market, holds ten litres of water in a thermally-sealed foil bag inside a durable cardboard box.

Water is poured from a Flexitap on the side of the box and as it is released the bag collapses, preventing air from getting inside and ensuring the water stays fresh right to the last glass.

Paul Martin, managing director of Harrogate Spa Water travelled to Paris to collect the design award and said he was also delighted with the way the boxed water has been received by retailers and the general public.

He said: "Bag-in-box is proving a huge hit with families who keep the box on the kitchen worktop as a means of increasing their water intake to the recommended eight glasses a day.

"Younger children in particular are drawn to the packaging as they enjoy the novelty of being able to serve themselves.

"Bag-in-box is also handy for barbecues and is useful for caravan and boat owners as it is space-efficient and takes up little more space than a five-litre plastic container or four 1.5-litre bottles.

"The space-saving attributes of the packaging are a key reason behind its success, especially in the retail trade where fixture space can be tight."

Updated: 10:03 Friday, February 20, 2004