PLANT-BASED MILK
MILKING THE MOMENT More and more plant-based milks are turning up in fridges, so why are people turning towards these plant-based alternatives, asks Thomas Oakley-Newell.
D
emand for non-dairy milk has risen over the past few years, with a growing number of plant-based options becoming available to consumers.
Where once it was just soy, there is now a fridge full of plant-based alternatives including oat, almond, coconut, rice, and even hemp. This demand has been fuelled not just by consumers’ concern for their wellbeing, but with a desire to purchase a more ethical and sustainable product. A study by the University of Oxford found that producing a glass of dairy milk creates nearly three times the amount of greenhouse gas emissions than any plant-based alternative and uses nine times more land. David Tyack, Managing Director at Vitasoy Australia, believes there is a number of reasons why Australians are turning away from traditional dairy milk. 18 February/March 2022 | C&I | www.c-store.com.au
“Consumers are choosing plant-based products for a wide variety of reasons, including sustainability, lifestyle choices or even taste preference. Plant-based milk is no longer niche, and now exists in over 40 per cent of Australian householdsi.” Bex Sanders-Clarke, Head of Sales at Inside Out, says non-dairy milks are no longer just for those who are lactose intolerant, and while that could still be a reason, there are many others. “There are the environmental factors. Plant-based milks tend to be lighter and lower in calories and saturated fat than dairy, so there is the health side. Also, given that the quality of non-dairy milk products has improved significantly over the last few years, a lot of people are now choosing it due to a taste preference.” A new company that has identified the recent rise in plant-based milk, is hemp-based milk alternative h.alt, founded by Lauren Chapman, a long-time passionate influencer and campaigner for plant-based nutrition.
