It’s that time of the week again! Welcome back to Office Groceries, the blog in which you can bank on getting your weekly dose of grocery facts. Last week we looked at the benefits of another alternative milk in our post, Office Milk Delivery: Why Choose Soya Milk? Make sure you check out that post, and the one before, once you’ve enjoyed this one. We are dedicated not only to providing your lactose free milk delivery, but educating people so they can choose the best milk for them.
This week we are plumbing the depths of oat milk. This milk is a relatively new popular milk on the scene. With the rise of veganism and environmental consciousness across the Western world, it has fast become a popular household item. But how did it become a regular part of our morning milk delivery? Hold on tight and we’ll tell you all.
1. The rise of the oat
Oat milk has been around since the 1990s. It is thought that it was created in Sweden by a group of students at the University of Lund who were seeking an alternative to suit their allergies to nuts and lactose. This group was headed by Rickard Öste, who went on to found Oatly. In 2020, Oatly is the largest supplier of oat milk. I bet he never thought that his invention would make it into thousands of morning milk deliveries across the country – just shows you should never give up!
After a fairly steady run as a dairy milk alternative for decades, the past few years have seen a huge increase in its popularity. According to Bloomberg, in 2019, retail sales of oat milk in the United States were $29 million, up from $4.4 million in 2017. This skyrocketing consumption is reflected in many business outlets, including its stocking in Starbucks, Costa and other large coffee shops chains. It has also become a popular item in our office milk delivery. Now more than 35% of British adults aged 16-24 are consuming alternative milks, according to the BBC. So, it makes sense to include some in your morning milk delivery!
2. You can milk a goat, but can you an oat?
Milking a cow is an age-old process that is mimicked by even nursery aged children across the country. But how exactly does Oat milk come from the oat? If there are any tiny udders down there, then we’ve yet to find them. According to Coveteur, the process of making the milk involves adding enzymes to raw oat kernels to liquify them into what we all know and love as oat milk. Once the oats are broken down, rapeseed oil is added for flavour and consistency, along with a sprinkling of other things (calcium carbonate, calcium phosphates, iodised salt, and vitamins). As you may gather, quite a lot goes into the humble milk you receive in your office milk and fruit delivery.
So, it’s not quite as simple as milking a cow to transform oats into the delicious drink that is in a third of the fridges in the UK. It’s a lengthy process – but then again so is pasteurising and mass producing dairy milk.
3. Get oatside and be one with nature
Current attitudes towards the environment and eco-consciousness are massive factors as to how much alternative milk is sold. This is because milk such as oat milk is far less detrimental to the environment to produce than dairy milk. Oat milk has the second lowest amount of water usage, beaten only by soya milk. When compared to dairy milk in particular, the difference is staggering. The amount of land needed to produce 200ml of oat milk is around 0.2 sq m, whereas dairy milk requires around 1.7. This all adds up and the positive effects on the environment will be radical if we switch to plant based alternatives. You can make a difference to the environment and your life if you try and make the switch. Encourage your office to try it out by featuring it in the office milk delivery.
We hope you enjoyed our latest blog post! Come back next week for another dose of grocery magic. If you have any questions regarding how to order your own office milk delivery then please don’t hesitate to contact us.