Oat, soya, almond – look in anyone’s fridge or head to a cafe and you will find a slew of plant-based drinks.
We hear multiple claims about health and the environment these days. But are these drinks actually better for you than cow’s milk, better for the climate, or automatically the right choice for those of us with allergies?
Some of these claims are true, some are not, our research found. Our fact checkers established the following:
Assessment: False.
Milk and dairy products naturally contain easily digestible protein, which is essential for building and maintaining muscle. They also provide calcium for bone health, as well as vitamins and iodine, says the German Nutrition Society (DGE).
You only find meaningful amounts of such micronutrients in plant-based alternatives that have been fortified. So if you are cutting out dairy products, check the list of ingredients on plant-based drinks or find another way to make up for those nutrients you are missing out on, say nutritionists.
Assessment: False.
Organic goods are not necessarily healthy. Organically produced plant-based drinks lack important nutrients such as calcium, vitamins and iodine.
Under the EU Organic Regulation 2018/848, vitamins and minerals may only be added to organic foods if this is required by law. There is no such regulation for plant-based milk alternatives, so no nutrients may be added to them.
Some producers circumvent the ban by offering combination drinks, such as an oat and seaweed drink, which uses calcium-rich organic seaweed. However, legal controversy surrounds this practice.
Assessment: Mostly false.
People who are allergic to milk protein or lactose intolerant often turn to plant-based drinks. However, they are not always the solution, as they can come with risks for people with allergies depending on the raw materials, production methods and labelling involved.
Many milk alternatives themselves contain allergens that must be declared and must be labelled accordingly, for example if they are based on soya, nuts, gluten/oats or lupins.
The German Allergy and Asthma Association also highlights the uncertainties when packaging refers to “traces of” potential allergens. This is because even if the drink does not consist of an allergen, unintended contamination can occur via production facilities or supply chains.
Assessment: Partially correct.
Scientists say young children in particular need an adequate supply of nutrients such as calcium, iodine, vitamin B2, vitamin B12 and protein. Unlike cow’s milk, however, plant-based drinks – regardless of the raw material they are made from – naturally contain none or only negligible amounts of these nutrients typically found in milk.
“Plant-based drinks are therefore not an equivalent substitute for cow’s milk,” says a specialist network set up by Germany’s Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture.
Specialists recommend qualified nutritional advice to ensure an adequate supply of all essential nutrients for any parents seeking to avoid dairy products.
However, it is hard to quantify the actual risk factors as only limited data is available. The effects on later health and growth have not been sufficiently investigated, according to scientists at Germany’s Max Rubner Institute for Nutrition and Food.
However, comparative cross-sectional or cohort studies have shown that high consumption of plant-based milk alternatives in early life may increase the risk of health problems.
Assessment: Largely correct
Milk is a staple food in many countries, but makes up a significant part of the carbon footprint of our diet.
A comparison per litre shows that cow’s milk performs significantly worse in environmental metrics than all plant-based options, as a 2018 review study found. For example, around three times as many greenhouse gases, around 10 times the land area, significantly higher water consumption and greater over-fertilisation were recorded, says science writer Hannah Ritchie in findings for “Our World in Data.”
However, there are significant differences between the plant-based alternatives. Almond milk requires less land and causes fewer emissions than soya cultivation, but can consume more water and contribute more to overfertilisation. So there is no clear winner across all environmental criteria.
Assessment: True, with exceptions
Under European food law, terms such as “milk,” “cream” or “cheese” may only be used for products derived from the udders of mammals such as cows, buffalo, sheep or goats. That means terms such as oat milk, almond milk or soya cream are not permitted.
However, an exemption is made for the use of traditionally established terms such as coconut milk, cocoa butter or peanut butter. – dpa
