- More than half of Brits (56%) say they’d be willing to consider drinking less dairy, yet over a quarter of us have never tried plant milk, despite it being a better option for the environment
- Campaign launches to stir up hot drink habits and flavour expert helps ‘nervous newbies’ and ‘flavour thrill seekers’ discover their perfect plant-based hot drinks
Environmental charity Hubbub is urging Brits to step outside of the dairy default with their cuppas and try a plant milk with their tea or coffee this May. The “Find your oooh without the moo”campaign will inspire people who may not have previously considered plant-milk to try it and encourage them to discover new flavour combinations.
Commuters will be targeted as they await their morning coffee fix, with eye-catching ads on the tube, at train stations and near coffee shops. The campaign will also make a buzz on social media with influencer collaborations and an edgy new film which asks, “how do you milk a nut?”.
New research conducted by Censuswide finds that although over half of Brits are open to drinking less dairy, most of us (65 per cent) still drink it every day1,. Yet there are solid environmental reasons for trying plant milk. For example oat, almond and soy milk generate between 68% and 77% fewer greenhouse gas emissions than dairy milk (Poore & Nemecek 2018), prompting the new campaign.
Alex Robinson, CEO of Hubbub said: “Our research shows that around two thirds of people who don’t drink plant milk haven’t actually tried it, so we think there is a huge opportunity here. This isn’t about turning the country vegan, but about nudging people to try a plant milk in their next hot drink to discover just how tasty it can be.
“Small changes like this can collectively make a significant environmental impact and help us shift to a culture where consuming more plant-based food & drinks is the norm. Many people have embraced the concept of “flexitarian” so why not give “flexidairyan” a try this May?”
The Censuswide survey of over 2,000 UK residents revealed that oat milk topped the chart as the UK’s favourite plant milk with 18% usually adding it to their hot drinks. This was closely followed by almond milk at 15% and soy at 11%. Nearly half (46%) said when they tried plant milk for the first time, it surpassed their expectations and trying it in coffee was the most common way for people to pop their plant-milk cherry.
Flavour recommendations:
To showcase the flavour options that plant milk can bring, Hubbub has partnered with Niki Segnit, flavour expert and author of The Flavour Thesaurus. From ‘nervous newbies’ to ‘flavour thrill seekers’, Niki’s recommendations offer a plant milk combination for everyone to try.
Niki recommends going for oat or almond milk in coffee. These are the most popular options for a reason, as Niki explains, “the roasted / toasted flavours work well together thanks to their strong overlap in molecules”. And for tea drinkers, “Soy milk is good for preserving the flavour of the tea. Soy milk is made from soybeans and is central to Asian cuisine, as is tea.”, says Niki.
Hubbub’s research shows that 16-24 year olds are almost twice as likely to regularly drink hazelnut milk (19 per cent versus the national average of 10 per cent). Describing this as the “Nutella Effect”, Niki explains, “At this age people are more likely to be (or have recently been) regular consumers of Nutella and its copycat products. This liking is transferred to coffee which has a flavour overlap with chocolate. Coffee with hazelnut tastes a bit like chocolate with hazelnut, so they are more open to it”.
For the more adventurous, Niki’s flavour pairings include ‘Oaten Apple’, a delicious combination of apple juice and oat milk that evokes “an oaty apple crumble with custard”, and the indulgent ‘Chocolate Amaretto’. Niki says, “Chocolate with almond milk can benefit from the addition of bitter almond, in the form of an essence or an almond syrup. There’s a hint of dark cherry flavour in bitter almond, suggestive of Black Forest Gateau. Take the hint and top the drink with a swirl of whipped cream.”
The campaign is supported by donations from the Starbucks 5p cup charge, which is applied when a customer chooses to use a single-use cup. Introduced voluntarily in 2018, Starbucks has donated these funds to Hubbub to run campaigns that are good for the planet and for people.
For more information visit www.hubbub.org.uk