Plant-based drinks are becoming more popular with women and the under-25s in particular, in Britain.
A quarter of Britons are drinking almond, oat, rice and other plant-based milks, according to research.
The reasons are to do with personal health, ethics and the environment. I will presume that “ethics” is a reference to animal welfare. The environmental connection refers to climate change.
Among 16 to 24-year-olds, 37% said they were consuming less cow’s milk for health reasons. Environmental concerns accounted for 36% in the survey which included 2,000 adults.
Accordingly, oat milk sales rose by 71% between 2017 and last year. Last year, plant-based milk sales rose by 23% and by 19% in 2017.
Sarah Cole, of the British Nutrition Foundation, said that plant-based milks can be part of a healthy, balanced diet. However, it was important to check if they had been fortified in order to avoid missing out on important nutrients and vitamins.
Dr Judith Bryans, the chief executive of Dairy UK, said that milk production accounted for less than 3% of the UK’s greenhouse gas emissions and that there was room in the market for dairy and non-dairy products.
Comment: I currently drink lactose-free cow’s milk. I’m going to try converting to a plant-based, non-dairy product. I wish to do this in order to protect animals and the environment. It is now well known that cows produce methane which damages the atmosphere causing climate change and global warming. I know that this is a contentious issue still but the evidence is mounting and as far as I’m concerned global warming is genuine.
