You’ve ditched dairy but you’re wondering which of those colorful cartons is the most sustainable milk alternative. It’s a good question, especially when new types of plant-based milk keep popping up, each with their own unique taste and nutritional profile. But what about their impact on people and the planet?

First things first: the average plant-based milk is much more sustainable than dairy milk. A 2018 study by the University of Oxford, found that a glass of dairy milk emits three times more GHGs than a glass of plant-based milk and takes up to nine times as much land. By mooving away from milk, you’ve already done the planet a big favor.

But the question remains: what is the most environmentally friendly milk?

Join us as we spill the soy beans on soya, thrash out oats, argue over almonds, contest coconuts, and more in our quest to find the most sustainable plant milk for your low impact latte.

Contents: Comparing Vegan Milk Sustainability

  1. Almond Milk Jump to section
  2. Cashew Milk Jump to section
  3. Coconut Milk Jump to section
  4. Hazelnut Milk Jump to section
  5. Hemp Milk Jump to section
  6. Flax Milk Jump to section
  7. Oat Milk Jump to section
  8. Pea Milk Jump to section
  9. Potato Milk Jump to section
  10. Rice Milk Jump to section
  11. Soy Milk Jump to section

Almond Milk

Being one of the most popular plant milks, you might hazard a guess that almond milk is the most sustainable non-dairy milk due to the fact that nut trees lock in carbon.

And yes, nuts like almonds are potentially one of the most sustainable foods—if they have been grown sustainably.

But therein lies the problem for the at-issue almond. Over 80% of the world’s almonds are grown in California. It’s a huge industry with at least two major problems.

  • Water Consumption: Almonds are the thirstiest of all substances used in plant-based milks. It takes 74.3 liters of water to produce just one 200 ml glass of almond milk, which is particularly problematic given California’s recent history of severe drought. But to put this in perspective, the same size glass of dairy milk (namely the alfafa feedstocks needed for it) requires 125.6 liters of water and California produces more dairy milk than almond milk.
  • Pesticides & Dying Bees: To pollinate all these almond crops, commercial bee colonies that are sent to almond farms—the biggest managed pollination event in the world—are dying in record numbers due to pesticide exposure, disease, and habitat loss. This impacts both commercial bee colonies and wild bee populations and other pollinators, putting the entire food system in jeopardy.

The industrial method of farming almonds (including the mechanization of pollination) is at fault here. Almonds are also grown in Australia, Italy, and Spain, so check where a brand is sourcing from and be sure to buy almond milk that’s certified organic from smaller-scale orchards—though unfortunately, these make up a small percentage of total almont milk.

Or, better yet, buy some organic almonds in bulk and make your own almond milk.

Cashew Milk

Like almonds, cashews are a thirsty crop but because they grow in the tropics in places like the Ivory Coast, Vietnam, Thailand, and India, rainwater meets most of this need.

The biggest issues with cashew crops are:

  • Deforestation: The Ivory Coast is the biggest cashew producer. Cashews are grown in extensive monocultures and contribute to deforestation, soil erosion, and soil nutrient depletion.
  • Pesticides: Heavy pesticide use affects wildlife and humans.
  • Labor conditions: Cashews are harvested by hand and are toxic to the touch during harvesting and processing stages. When working conditions are poor, laborers can suffer painful skin injuries. Make sure you only buy cashew milk and other cashew products that are Fair Trade certified.

Coconut Milk

Coconut milk is an increasingly popular dairy alternative but (coco)nutshell, it’s not the most sustainable vegan milk alternative, either. Increasing global demand for coconut products poses a threat to the local environment as coconuts start being farmed on a larger scale.

Coconuts are grown in the tropics in places like India, Indonesia, and the Philippines so it’s an ingredient that racks up those food miles—AKA carbon emissions.

Coconuts also have a history of worker exploitation. Labor conditions and pay are often poor so, as with cashews, it’s important to buy fair trade certified and sustainably sourced products.

Hazelnut Milk

Given the issues with almonds, cashews, and coconuts, you’re almost certainly wondering, “What is the most sustainable nut milk?”

Hazelnuts—the 5th largest tree nut crop—might just crack the case. They grow in wetter climates like the Pacific Northwest, where higher rainfall meets their need for water. This means they’re not reliant on vast amounts of irrigation like almond crops. They’re also wind-pollinated, eliminating the need to truck in commercial bee colonies to manage the pollination process (and the associated environmental fall-out).

Overall, hazelnuts are a low-input, low impact crop that can be grown as part of regenerative agriculture systems.

Hemp Milk

Moving on from nuts to seeds, we have hemp, which is highly regarded as the sustainable crop of the future. It’s grown as a niche crop in the Northern Hemisphere. It’s a fast-growing, high-yielding, and carbon-negative crop that can easily be grown without any chemical inputs.

Oh, AND it acts as a natural bioremediator, cleansing heavy metals and other toxins from the soil in which it’s planted.

All parts of the plant can be used for hemp clothing, food, biofuel, paper and more. From underwear to shoes, this sustainable crop can dress us head to toe and be splashed in our morning cup of joe.

Flax Milk

Flax milk is somewhat more on the niche (but hopefully up-and-coming) side of sustainable milk alternatives.

Another seed with similar eco credentials to hemp, flax is the basis for linen fabric with common practical applications in clothing and home textiles. Like hemp, flax is a non-GMO hyper-efficient crop that doesn’t require much land, water, or inputs to grow. It’s also naturally pest resistant, meaning pesticides are not needed.

Flax plants also provide protein-rich seeds full of healthy fats, vitamins, and omega-3s, yielding milk that’s safe for nut allergies, keto diets, and vegans alike.

Oat Milk

Oat milk might be one of the most popular dairy alternatives especially among those with nut allergies who love an extra creamy latte.

Oats are grown in cooler climates avoiding the deforestation issues associated with some crops grown in the Global South. However, most oats are grown in large monoculture operations and again, pesticides are a serious concern.

The Environmental Working Group has found glyphosate (a recognized carcinogen) in many oat-based products including children’s cereal, due to the pre-harvest spray of Roundup. In the first round of tests, glyphosate was identified in all but two of 45 samples made with conventionally grown oats and at levels higher than those deemed safe for children’s health. Glyphosate was also found in roughly one-third of the 16 products made with “organic” oats, albeit at levels below the EWG’s benchmark.

How does glyphosate get into organic cereal? It’s assumed that it must either drift across from fields of conventionally grown crops or come from cross-contamination in production facilities.

Either way, this is a testament to the heavy use of glyphosate in general and a reminder of the importance of supporting organic, sustainable food systems.

Pea Milk

A relative newcomer to the market, pea protein is becoming steadily more popular as a vegan substitute for whey and other dairy-derived protein powders. It can also be used to make milk.

Yellow split peas are first milled into flour and then processed to separate the protein from the fiber and starch. The purified pea protein is then combined with water and other ingredients.

Part of the legume family, peas are a nitrogen-fixing crop. They can be grown regeneratively as part of crop rotations, reducing the need for nitrogen fertilizer and the impact that this has on the planet through the release of nitrous oxide.

Potato Milk

The newest plant milk on the block is made from the humble potato. Swedish-brand DUG launched its potato-based eco friendly milk in 2021 and it may just be the best sustainable milk alternative out there. According to DUG, potatoes need half the space of oats to grow, 98% less water than almonds, and have a low climate footprint of 0.27 kg CO2e/kg.

The Journal of Cleaner Production compared the carbon footprint of the three most popular starchy carbohydrate foods: pasta, potatoes, and rice. Potatoes had the lowest levels of GHG emissions plus a much lower level of water consumption than rice.

Plus, potatoes are a hardy crop that don’t require specific growing conditions and can thus be cultivated in almost any climate. If potato milk production were to be adopted on a wide scale, it would drastically reduce the mileage these starchy superstars need to travel before making into your morning muesli.

Rice Milk

Rice milk falls short of making the grade (er, grain?) for the best eco-friendly milk. In fact, rice may actually have the highest GHG emissions due to the methane-producing bacteria in flooded rice paddies.

Water consumption is also a major issue. Rice is second only to almond milk as the most thirsty plant milk requiring 54 liters of water per 200ml glass of milk.

Soy Milk

Last but perhaps not least, we have soy milk, or soya in Europe, one of the first plant milks to reach global popularity before health concerns regarding the hormones in soy and the linkage between a high soy diet and breast cancer risk meant it fell out of favor, especially with more plant-based alternatives rising to compete with it.

Health aside, soya ranks on a similar level to oat milk with lower CO2 emissions and water usage. As another member of the legume family, soy plants are nitrogen-fixing and can be grown as part of a sustainable farming set-up, but unfortunately, that’s not the widespread reality.

Soy has been associated with high rates of soil erosion and deforestation in South America—so much so that it accounts for 47% of the EU’s imported deforestation-linked agricultural and livestock commodities.

Although much in this area is actually grown for animal feed, Brazil and Argentina (along with the US) are still responsible for 80% of the world’s soy cultivation. South American soy farming also has negative social impacts, like displacing small farming communities and worker exploitation ( it’s far from the most ethical milk).

However, because of soy’s widely applicable uses, the WWF and US Soy (a collaboration of American soybean farmers) are working to improve the methods used to cultivate soy. Until wider soy supply chain improvements can be made, avoid soy grown in South America and always choose organic.