Your Milk Choice is Killing the Planet
By: Naddine Luci
Tags: Health, Sustainability, Food, Environment, Nutrition

Dairy Milk

It’s pretty known by now how plain, old cow milk is not the best for the environment. In fact, it’s the worst.

A 2018 research in the University of Oxford found that the production of a single glass of dairy milk generates almost three times more greenhouse gas emissions than any alternative. Not only that, but it consumes nine times more land than any of the milk alternatives. It also uses the most water with 120 liters needed for a 200-ml glass.

Nutrition per 8-ounce serving

Calories: 150

Total fat: 8 g

Saturated fat: 5 g

Protein: 8 g

Sugar: 12 g

% Calcium: 30

% Vitamin D: 25

Rice Milk

This may be less expensive than other milk alternatives, but its production has the most emissions among them all. This is due to the bacteria that breed in rice paddies releasing methane into the atmosphere. It also packs fewer nutrients and pollutes waterways due to the large amounts of fertilizer used.

Other alternatives may have this runoff as well, but rice milk contributes three times the amount. It uses 54 liters of water per glass, not much compared to dairy, but it’s still a lot.

Nutrition per 8-ounce serving

Calories: 120

Total fat: 2.5 g

Saturated fat: 0 g

Protein: 1 g

Sugar: 10 g

% Calcium: 30

% Vitamin D: 25

Almond Milk

This must be the most popular of the alternatives as it is also pretty much available in any store. But due to its high water consumption and subsequent droughting effect, it is harmful to the environment. Almond milk is especially hard on bees, killing over a third of the 70% of commercial bees used in the US just last year.

On the bright side, it uses relatively smaller farmland than most alternatives and has lower emissions.

Nutrition per 8-ounce serving

Calories: 60 g

Total fat: 2.5 g

Saturated fat: 0 g

Protein: 1 g

Sugar: 7 g

% Calcium: 45

% Vitamin D: 25

Coconut Milk

You should know that this milk contains more saturated fats than the other alternatives. However, environmentally, this alternative is actually one of the best options.

Coconut trees use a relatively small amount of water, has a fairly low impact on the land, and absorb carbon dioxide. On top of that, you don’t have to deforest the trees to make the milk.

However, since the vast majority of coconuts are grown in tropical regions such as Indonesia, the Philippines, and India, where pickers are often paid less than a dollar a day, the high global demand for this milk has led to deforestation and the exploitation of workers.

It's essential that you choose brands that have good ethical and sustainable practices, and are certified fair trade.

Nutrition per 8-ounce serving

Calories: 70

Total fat: 4.5 g

Saturated fat: 4 g

Protein: 0 g

Sugar: 7 g

% Calcium: 10

% Vitamin D: 30

Soy Milk

Soy milk is also a great dairy alternative.

In the Oxford study, soy milk performed really well in the rankings for environmental impacts — low on all three measures of emissions, water usage, and land usage. It even packs a similar protein content to dairy milk, if that‘s one of the things you're looking out for.

Soy milk has been around before almond milk became the go-to alternative until people got freaked out about its hormones. Soy milk contains a fairly high amount of certain hormones that are similar to human hormones such as phytoestrogens which act similar to human estrogen.

The truth is, you would have to consume impossibly large amounts of soy for this to ever be a problem.

One of the main negative implications of this alternative is that soybeans are grown in large amounts around the globe to feed livestock for meat and dairy production. You should know where your soy is coming from, as some soybeans drive deforestation in the Amazon to make way for soy farms while also displacing indigenous peoples and small farmers. The best workaround for this is to look up the brands available to you and choose the organic kinds.

Nutrition per 8-ounce serving

Calories: 110 g

Total fat: 4.5 g

Saturated fat: 0.5 g

Protein: 8 g

Sugar: 6 g

% Calcium: 45

% Vitamin D: 30

Hazelnut Milk

It hasn’t been long since hazelnut milk came to the spotlight and it’s a great alternative for one of the, well, alternatives — the almond milk. If you want the almond milk’s nutrients and nuttiness minus its environmental impacts, hazelnut is a great alternative.

Since the wind pollinates them unlike almonds which use commercial bees, it is better for the environment. And like all nuts, its trees pull carbon from the atmosphere hence reducing greenhouse gas emissions. They also grow in moist climates, where drought is less of an issue, causing less strain on the environment.

Nutrition per 8-ounce serving (Elmhurst vs. Pacific)

Calories: 140 (“more nuts”) vs. 110

Total fat: 11 g vs. 3.5 g

Saturated fat: 5

Protein: 3 g vs. 2 g

Sugar: 12 g vs. 5 g

% Calcium: 20 mg vs. 123 mg

Pea Milk

Aside from lower greenhouse gas emissions, the production of pea milk uses relatively less water than dairy milk and other alternatives. There’s not much research on this alternative, but an assessment conducted by Ripple pea milk reports that the product contributes just 25% of the emissions of dairy milk.

Nutrition per 8-ounce serving (unsweetened)

Calories: 79

Total fat: 4.5 g

Protein: 8 g

Sugar: 0 g

% Calcium: 45 (Ripple brand)

% Vitamin D: 30 (Ripple brand)

Macadamia Milk

Another good nut milk option is macadamia, which when compared to almonds, uses far less water in its production since it is grown in regions where water scarcity is less of a concern.

Macadamia milk is nutritionally a good alternative to dairy milk, although you might want to look out for its higher fat content compared to other alternatives.

Nutrition per 8-ounce serving

Calories: 60

Total fat: 3.5 g

Protein: 0 g

Sugar: 7 g

% Calcium: 50

% Vitamin D: 25

Hemp Milk

Hemp is grown in relatively small batches which makes them more environmentally friendly since they do not have the negative contributions monoculture operations contribute.

It also has a fairly high amount of protein with 4 grams per cup, and healthy fats.

Nutrition per 8-ounce serving

Calories: 70–100

Total fat: 5–6 g

Saturated fat: 0.5 g

Protein: 2–4 g

Sugar: 6 g

% Calcium: 30-50

% Vitamin D: 25

Oat Milk

This milk alternative has been gaining popularity these past few years, and for good reason.

According to Liz Specht, associate director of science and technology for the Good Food Institute, a non-profit that promotes plant-based diets, “Oat milk performs very well on all sustainability metrics.” In fact, a life cycle assessment conducted by Swedish brand Oatly reports that land use and greenhouse gas emissions for oat milk are about 80% lower than for cow’s milk.

Currently, about 50% to 90% of oat production is used for animal feed so there are relatively plenty of oats around than almonds. Over time, we may just be slowly stealing that production for milk instead of animal feed. Also, oat is grown in cooler climates which removes the need for deforestation.

However, since it is a monocultural crop, it is more vulnerable to pests, requiring the use of the Roundup pesticide containing glyphosate which may be a possible carcinogen, right before harvest. It is good to note that popular oat milk brand Oatly maintains its oats are certified glyphosate free.

Nutrition per 8-ounce serving

Calories: 140–170

Total fat: 4.5–5 g

Saturated fat: 1 g

Protein: 2.5–5 g

Sugar: 9–9.5 g

% Calcium: 25

% Vitamin D: 20