It wasn’t long ago that milk was just milk, and milk came from cows. Now, the world is upside down and milk comes from nuts, and seeds, and oats, and peas? My niece, 4 years old and completely ridiculous, can’t seem to get over my “funny milk from nuts”, and giggles mercilessly at me and my morning coffee. But, with roughly a quarter of the UK now opting for plant-based milks, the tide really is turning for milk and what milk even is.
Whether spurred on by concerns over animal rights, the climate crisis, health or just personal taste, the coffee industry has seen demand for alternative milks skyrocket. This new year, an estimated 350,000 people around the world are ditching dairy for the month of January in the annual ‘Veganuary’ campaign, so it’s never been more important that we understand and include this movement, to optimise the coffee experience in our shops.
Ditching the dairy?
Is it really any wonder that the public opinion of dairy is turning sour? Results published by researchers at Oxford University on the environmental impact of cow’s milk compared to its cruelty-free counterparts show that in a single serving of cow's milk, the carbon footprint is at least 3 times that of any dairy-free milk alternative.
Let’s put that into perspective...
A daily serving of cow's milk for a year is equal to driving a petrol car for 585 miles,
and each 200ml glass of cow’s milk will cost you 0.6kg of carbon dioxide, 1.8 square metres of land, and 125.6 litres of water.
This dramatic difference in the carbon footprint is mainly caused by, to put it simply, very gassy cows. The cows used for dairy production emit large quantities of methane, a greenhouse gas which is 30 times more potent than carbon dioxide. When combined with the day-to-day running costs, transport, and milk processing, it’s obvious that this practice is extremely energy intensive.
Redefining milk
Plant-based milks used to just mean Soya, which seemed to be the only plant milk available outside of the dark corners of niche wholefood shops in Shoreditch. We’ve come a long way, and as the alternative milk market continues to boom in popularity, countless alternative milk brands are fighting for the top spot, each touting the environmental benefits of their milk.
So, which type of plant-based milk is the best for the environment?
Glass for glass, oat and soy milk draw for the environmental gold star, with each having very low emissions, land and water use. Between the two, it really comes down to which one works best with your brew, as acidic coffees can cause soy milk to curdle at high temperatures.
Making almond milk is thirsty work, as each glass takes more water than your morning shower! And rice milk isn’t far behind, using 54 litres of water per glass of milk.
However, even the thirstiest almonds use just over half the water that goes into producing the equivalent in dairy milk!
Another important point to consider is the packaging of milk, as most come in a tetra pack, which are famously difficult to recycle. Some brands, such as Innocent, are using clear plastic bottles, which may be a better alternative depending on the recycling facilities in your area (check here or visit your city council website).
Rebecca, manager of a vegan café, says that she always recommends oat milk to her customers,
“as it pairs well with the coffee we use”, and “it’s the creamiest, froths well and is most suitable for latte art”.
She recommended the brand "Oat-ly Barista", because of its “beautiful texture”, “funny branding”, and their strong environmental standpoint.
Overall, oat milk is probably the best all-rounder, with a great environmental score card and a good reputation amongst baristas. Saying that, it’s best to offer a selection of alternative milks, to let customers choose based not only on environmental concern, but also allergies and personal tastes.
Basically, I urge you to try a few alternatives, foam them up and see which one's match best with your coffee, and whichever you decide, you have some environmental points to discuss with your customers.
Given the way plant-based milks have exploded onto the coffee scene, I expect that one-day oat milk may be the new industry standard. Until then, I’ll just be an oat milk girl, standing in a cow milk world, pleading with a small child to just try the “funny milk from nuts”.