Milk
These days the word milk has become quite a controversial topic for so many reasons. But why is that the case? The top two reasons that we have narrowed it down to are for sure health and ethics. In this article we dive deep into the the cream of the crop, the 35 best vegan milk UK brands & products available.
Milk Of The Past
The UK has been promoting cows milk as part of a healthy diet for many years. Milk was served to children around the country at schools. The government recommended cow’s milk as the best source of calcium for growing children. The United Kingdom has had a long and troubling history when it comes to the dairy industry. In the past the only forms of milk available to most people around the world were animal-based. People drank cow’s milk, goat’s, milk, and sometimes even something as exotic as camel’s milk.
Milk Of The Present
Today more and more people are turning their backs on animal-based milk products. Grocery stores, coffee shops, and restaurants are all reporting an increase in demand for plant-based milk alternatives. These days we know that cow’s milk does not, in fact, contain as much calcium as dairy farmers would have us believe. In fact, some plant-based milk brands now contain more calcium than their dairy counterparts. Did that come as a surprise to you?
Breast Milk
Is it odd that we don’t consume our own species breast milk after a certain age? But why do we feel as though we have the rights to another species breast milk? Most people are unware that this comes at a cost. This cost unfortunately results in death. It’s at the expense of typically the cows baby. Most of us would not feel comfortable suckling from the udder of a cow. So why do we feel it’s okay to drink milk from animals if we’re not the ones extracting it ourselves?
Milk off the future
With the steady yearly rise in demand for all plant-based milk products the future of vegan milk is looking very bright indeed. But will we ever see the world put an end to the production of dairy? Maybe not in the near future but things do look positive. Could it be possible that generations to come will only see cruelty-free plant-based milk options on their supermarket shelves? We can only hope that the inhabitants of this planet let compassion for animals into their hearts. Finally putting an end to the torture and slavery inflicted upon animals for centuries by mankind.
Best Vegan Milk UK Brands Have To Offer
Before we get to the list, we thought is was important that we disclose who the taste testing sample group comprised of. The Caavakushi team all taste tested each of the vegan milks in this article and a whole bunch of others too. Unfortunately some of the milk’s didn’t make the cut. That’s why you won’t be seeing them on our list. Every plant-based milk we have mentioned in this article has its own special qualities which helped it to get onto our list. Now that’s all over and done with, let’s get straight to it. Below is a list of the 35 best vegan milk brands in the UK. They’re not in any particular order.
Alpro This Is Not M*LK Whole Oat
Alpro not only produces plant-based milks but also a selection of other plant-based products. Their new This Is Not M*LK Whole oat is a replicated version of full fat dairy milk. The product itself does not disappoint.
Alpro This Is Not M*LK Semi Oat
Alpro made a full fat dairy-free milk so of course they had to make a semi skimmed version too. Don’t worry it’s really easy to identify one from the other. The semi skimmed is green and the whole milk is blue.
Tesco Growers Harvest Unsweetened Soya Milk
Tesco have created their very own economy brand which they have named growers harvest. If you’re strapped for cash we suggest trying their plant-based unsweetened soya milk. It tastes good and is much more cheaper than most of its competitors.
Oatly The Original Oat Milk Whole
If you love oats then this plant-based milk brand is definitely for you. They are one of the most well respected oat milk brands in the game. These oat milk heavy weights have been around since the early 90’s. Can you believe it? Most people in the early 90’s probably hadn’t even heard of the term oat milk. The dark blue packaging helps customers recognise that this is their whole milk option.
Oatly The Original Oat Milk Semi
If Oatly created a whole milk option they needed to have a semi skimmed version. This milk is a great choice for those who don’t want a very heavy oat milk. It’s also easily identifiable from their other milks as it’s packaged in a light blue milk carton.
Oatly Oat Milk Barista Edition
This milk is made just for professional tea and coffee drinkers. It’s the plant-based milk you find at your local coffee shop. In fact we might go as far as to say it’s the gold standard for oat milk in the UK.
Rebel Kitchen Barista Mylk
Rebel Kitchen is quite a well-known brand in the UK plant-based scene. They also have an ever expanding plant-based product line. Surprisingly we actually had no idea that they made vegan milk. Did you? We all agreed it was coffee shop quality milk but we’re not sure how many coffee shops actually use it in the UK. Any coffee shop owners want to jump in on the conversation and let us know what barista vegan milks they prefer to use? Rebel Kitchen Barista Mylk contains a mixture of yummy ingredients including oats, bean protein, coconut cream, sea salt & nutritional yeast.
Rebel Kitchen Chocolate Coconut Mylk
What the team loved the most about this product was the detailed and dramatic graphics on the packaging. Very artsy indeed. Something customers at any coffee shop or supermarket would instantly notice. There’s also no way that you can ever go wrong when it comes to making vegan chocolate milk.
MOMA Barista Edition Unsweetened Oat Milk
The name of this plant-based milk makes you feel so warm and comforted. What a clever marketing tactic to use. Most people love their mothers so it’s easy for them to make a mental connection between MoMa and mum. It could also back fire in some cases as not everyone has a good relationship with their mum or even any relationship at all. With that said it’s a good thing the oat milk tastes great. As its unsweetened it prevents your from adding extra unwanted calories to your diet. This milk is especially delightful when heated up. It feels a bit like a warm hug.
Silk Almond Breeze Unsweetened Milk
The bright eye-catching colours used on the packaging bring this almond milk to life. As an added bonus, this milk has no saturated fat and is a great source of calcium. Some of the Caavakushi team have a sweet spot for it too.
Minor Figures Everyday Oat Milk
The packaging for this vegan milk brand is cute and quirky! It’s also the perfect milk to drink on a daily basis (much like the packaging suggests). This plant-based milk is packaged in an easily recognisable pastel yellow carton.
Minor Figures Everyday Oat Milk Light
If you’re looking for a slightly lighter daily oat milk option, this maybe for you. It’s fortified with calcium and vitamins to give you a nutritional boost. This vegan milk option comes packaged in a highly unusual yet interesting colour for a milk carton, pastel green.
Morrison’s Coconut Milk
The team at Caavakushi are absolutely in love with this milk! There are two main reasons this milk is so popular around the office. The first is that the coconut milk tastes so deliciously sweet and the other is that it’s much cheaper than most of the other coconut milk brands on the market. If you buy a lot of plant-based milks you probably already know that coconut milk is one of the most expensive types of vegan milks that you can buy. That’s why the team was shocked when we found this scrumptious little bargain.
Morrison’s Unsweetened Almond Milk Drink
All we’ve got to say is thank God for another affordable and tasty plant-based milk from Morrison’s. It has a distinct almond flavour and the emerald green packaging helps vegans pick it out from the crowd as a plant-based alternative.
Nutty Bruce Organic Activated Almond & Oat Milk Unsweetened
This plant-based milk is made for those who like trying new things. It’s for the brave amongst us. It’s truly a milk that will satisfy those who love both almond milk & oat milk. Are you adventurous enough to give it a try?
Plenish Organic Unsweetened Oat Milk
If you’re an oat lover the packaging of this plant-based milk brand may just hypnotize you into buying their product. The fresh, clean oats are front and centre. They are surrounded by a watermelon/rouge pink which is such a refreshingly different colour to package oat milk in.
Plenish Unsweetened Almond Milk
When it comes to this vegan milk brand, the packaging is everything. They really know how to make you hungry. The large enticing picture of a pot filled with almonds, is enough to convince anyone to try this almond milk. With a forest green background the packaging lets you know without the use of words that this almond milk is plant-based.
Plenish Organic Unsweetened Hazelnut Milk
Many of the members of the Caavakushi team are big fans of vegan hazelnut chocolate. So naturally these super fans couldn’t wait to try the hazelnut milk. But not only did this vegan milk go down well with them, it also helped to gained a lot of new hazelnut fans around the office. Some of it’s new fans said it might just be the best vegan milk UK brand that they’ve ever tried!
Plenish Organic Unsweetened Cashew Milk
No one apart from one person at Caavakushi HQ had ever tried cashew milk before. It’s not exactly the most common type of plant-based milk available in your local supermarket, is it? Being that we are all quite an adventurous bunch there was definitely an air of excitement when it came to sampling this vegan milk. A few people on the team were sceptical about the milk before trying it. Luckily all their doubts were cast aside once they had the chance to try the plant-based milk for themselves. It’s truly become a new hit around the office.
Califia Farms Unsweetened Oat Milk
Califia Farms unsweetened oat milk is free of any added sugars, lactose free & dairy free. It’s gold and light blue packaging is eye catching plus unique to the brand. This plant-based milk also has added calcium and vitamin D.
Minor Figures Barista Oat Organic Milk
Calling all British coffee fans. This might just be the perfect plant-based milk to add to your coffee. This vegan milk is made from organic oats. This milk is packaged in a basic clean white milk carton.
Sproud Powered By Peas Plant-Based Milk Barista
Did you have any idea that peas contain protein? Well the peas in this vegan milk are packed with plant power. So we don’t think it would be a bad idea to add this milk to your daily routine. Maybe a splash here and there in your tea or coffee perhaps. It’s also highly likely to give you a boost of plant-based protein power throughout your day (thanks to the peas of course). This vegan milk is also GMO free, lactose free, dairy free, soy free, rice free, almond free & oat free. Anyone find that impressive?
Sproud Plant-Based Vanilla Milk
This was deem one of the best vegan milks in the UK by the team. It’s definitely a favourite at Caavakushi head quarters. None of the team had ever sampled a vanilla plant-based milk before (other than in the form of a milkshake) and they were excited to do so. They loved this milk so much it’s become a new edition to most of the teams weekly shops.
Sproud Plant-Based Milk Chocolate Flavour
Who can resist a milk chocolate flavour vegan milk? Not us! Can you? Even the mere mention of milk chocolate flavoured milk catches the teams attention at Caavakushi HQ’s no matter what they are busy doing. It really has some remarkable power, doesn’t it? If you haven’t tasted this magical milk we recommend you do. Trust us, you wont be disappointed.
Glebe Farm The Purest British Oats Milk – Creamy & Enriched
If your a proud Brit and want to help support British businesses you have to try out this plant-based milk. It’s made from British farmed oats and it sure does taste creamy.
Glebe Farm The Purest British Oats Milk Barista
We think most UK coffee shops should be stocking more home grown products. It would be great to see a lot more UK coffee shops stepping up and supporting their fellow brits. British businesses supporting other British businesses is just what the country needs.
Qwrkee Plant-Based Pea M’lk Sweetened
This sweetened pea milk actually tastes surprisingly good. It’s hard to imagine that milk made from peas would taste like anything other than mushy peas. Qwrkee really can perform miracles. The Caavakushi team is definitely looking forward to what they come up with next.
Rude Health Tiger Nut Organic Milk
Don’t worry, this milk is not made from tigers nuts. Interestingly enough this vegan milk is actually made using rice. It’s also dairy-free, has no added sugar and does not have any thickeners either. Have you had the chance to try this plant-based rice milk as of yet?
Rude Health Organic Soya Milk
At Caavakushi we love soya milk, so naturally we had to try the Rude Health organic soya milk out to see if it met our standards. The good news for rude health is that it passed effortlessly.
Rude Health Organic Roasted Almond Oat Milk
Not a soul at Caavakushi had ever tried roasted almond & oat milk before. You taste the roasted almonds and oats on your first sip. Roasting the ingredients before making the milk was a really unique touch. It certainly creates a memorable experience for all that taste this delicious drink.
Rude Health Organic Brown Rice Milk
This might actually be the only brown rice milk brand in the country. We didn’t have high hopes for this plant-based brown rice milk. Thankfully our fears were unfounded. The brown rice milk has a firm spot on our list. It’s one of the unexpectedly best vegan milk UK brands for sure.
Rude Health Organic Chocolate Hazelnut Milk
Both chocolate and hazelnut are great ingredients to make plant-based milk out of. Are they not? This vegan milk is very rich and smooth. You should take your time to enjoy it as a treat or reward. It’s like it was purposely made for special occasions.
Mighty Pea Original Milk Alternative
We all know that peas are a great source of protein. So why not fill your glass of milk with pea protein. It keeps you nice and strong and is a healthy choice. Mighty pea has quite the range of plant-based milks we strongly suggest you take a look through their collection of tasty vegan milks.
Alpro Soya Chocolate Milk
You don’t have to be a child at heart to enjoy a glass of Alpros chocolate milk. Have you tried it? Most vegan chocolate fans would agree that this plant-based chocolate milk is probably one of the best vegan milk options in the UK. For an added bonus, it’s also a long life milk that’s high in protein & fibre.
Alpro Soya Strawberry Milk
Alpro have created their very own fun vegan milk which is probably targeted at the younger generations. Strawberry is definitely not a very common vegan milk flavour on the market. It’s uniqueness is why we decided to include it on our list. It’s definitely a great choice for the kids and strawberry lovers too.
Thoughts
What do you think the best vegan milk in the UK is? Please do let us know if you think that there are any plant-based milk brands that we’ve missed on our list. We promise that we won’t be offended in the slightest. Tell us what you really think on our Instagram, TikTok, Pinterest, YouTube, Facebook or Twitter. Alternatively why not start a discussion about your favourite plant-based milk brands on the Caavakushi vegan forum.
