In a survey done by IPSOS and commissioned by Dairy Management, Inc., 73% of consumers queried believe almond milk has as much or more protein per serving than milk from cows. It doesn’t. In fact, dairy milk has eight times more protein.

Another 53% believe plant-based beverage marketers label their products as ‘milk’ because it has similar nutritional value.

And the misinformation was even more common among those consumers who only bought plant-based beverages. Of those, 68% strongly or somewhat agreed that plant-based ‘milk’ beverages have the same nutrition as dairy milk.

Milk labeling “is much more than a sideshow over whether consumers can tell the difference between an almond and a cow,” says Jim Mulhern, National Milk Producers Federation president and CEO. Consumer confusion can, and may be, leading to an increasing number of children suffering from nutritionally-inadequate diets, he says.

“The Food and Drug Administration needs to immediately end the application of the term ‘milk’ to non-dairy products,” says Mulhern. That will help consumers distinguish between nutrient-rich milk from cows and water-heavy, nutrition poor imitators, he says.

 

Want more on this subject? Read:

 

• Some Consumers Think Nut Milk Contains Dairy
• The Impact of Milk Alternatives Goes Beyond Demand
• FDA Moves Forward with Addressing Dairy Labeling for Plant-based “Milk”