I got suggested a video the other day all about the truth about Plant Milks and found the research and facts really interesting so thought I’d share just some of them in this weeks blog with the youtube video listed below if you prefer to go over there and see it. The whole idea of the video was to question the idea that the ingredients of plant milk are not environmentally friendly. 

Rainforest deforestation?

 Soya is farmed in South America, and so is responsible for deforestation, species extinction and the displacement of indigenous people. However it’s estimated that 96% of this is used for animal feed instead of direct to human foods or drinks. Brazil produces the largest amount of Soy milk and 90% of their Soy produced is used for animal feed.

Greenhouse gases.

Cows milk produces 3 times more greenhouse gases than Soy & oat milk.  Land use Cows milk uses 11 times more land than oat milk. 13x more than Soya Because nuts grow on trees, almond production can actually be carbon negative

Water usage. 

Then looking at Almond milk, it is a very water intensive nut and so does this have a harsh environmentally effect? A glass of almond milk needs 75 litres and a glass of cows milk requires 125litres.  If we look at oat milk, cows milk requires 13 x more water. AND 22x more than Soy Milk (global averages)

What's in your food?

The UK imports around 3.2 million tons of Soya per year, 75% from South America, and at least 90% for animal feeds. Also the soya from South America is almost entirely GM soya and so it is unlikely even to be used directly for human consumption. I’ve learnt so much from this video especially as before I didn’t really know how we got our soya or meat substitutes. I know many people may be turned off meat substitutes or soya because they don’t know where it comes from or how it is made, yet the same question can be asked for meat, where does their foods actually come from, and the animals themselves may not have GM, yet some of their foods would.