If you read only the headlines in mainstream press coverage of the recent government nutrition report on plant milks, you’d be left thinking the entire non-dairy milk sector was a poor nutritional alternative to cows milk.
“No vegan milk is equivalent to dairy, nutritionists conclude”, said The Times. “Vegan milk not ‘nutritionally equivalent’ to cows milk, say experts”, ran The Telegraph. “Children under five at risk from only consuming plant milk, say experts”, warned The Independent.
But the devil is in the detail with scientific reports, not in newspaper headlines.
There was a much more positive conclusion behind the report than the headlines suggest: fortified alternative milks without added sugar are an acceptable and safe alternative to cows milk from the age of one. This validates the advice The Vegan Society submitted to the government at the consultation stage of this report.
Of course vegan milk is not the ‘equivalent’ of cows milk – but is that really the point?
Dairy is not essential
Plant milks can even be a better nutritional option when consumed as part of a healthy, balanced diet. When compared to dairy, unsweetened plant-based alternatives are low in saturated fat and sugar, and provide a source of fibre – something cows milk lacks.
The recent National Diet & Nutrition Survey (June 2025) showed we are eating too much saturated fat, consuming too much sugar and neglecting our fibre needs, with implications for our long-term health.
It’s time to acknowledge that dairy is not an essential part of our diets and should not be held as the ‘nutritional standard’.
The NHS Eatwell Guide and the British Dietetic Association confirm that unsweetened and fortified plant-based dairy alternatives provide a valuable source of calcium, vitamin D, iodine, vitamin B12 and other micronutrients, as well as a source of protein in the case of soya milk. In the UK, the majority of plant milks are fortified.
Scotland is already ahead of the curve. The Scottish Milk and Healthy Snack Scheme offers a free serving of plant-based milk to preschool children as an alternative to dairy. The rest of the UK should follow suit.
That’s a key part of our ‘Play Fair with Plant Milk’ campaign: we want fortified, unsweetened plant milk to be recognised as an alternative wherever animal milk is supported or promoted. This includes the Nursery Milk Scheme and School Milk Subsidy Scheme in England.
Playing fair with plant-based
This is more than a ‘vegan’ issue. Alternative milks are widely consumed in the UK: one-third (33%) of people in the UK say they drink plant-based milk either daily or a few times per week. Of those who consume plant-based milk, 46% do so because they think it’s healthier and 35% think it’s better for the environment. They’re right on both counts.
Our research shows a shift to plant-based diets could save the NHS more than £6.7bn annually.
Environmentally, the benefits are just as stark: plant-based milks generate roughly one-third (or less) of the greenhouse gas emissions of cows milk and use significantly less water. And then there’s the ethical dimension: more than one billion animals are used or killed for food in the UK each year.
Newspaper headlines are not the only problem here. Coffee shops should stop adding extra charges for oat, soya and almond milks, and the government should level the playing field for alternatives in order to make them more accessible and affordable.
The nutritional case is clear. The environmental case is urgent. The ethical case is undeniable.
It’s time to stop treating dairy as the default and start playing fair with plant milk and the wider plant-based movement.
Emily Angus, senior dietitian at The Vegan Society
No comments yet