Research commissioned by the Cambridgeshire-based oat milk producer – ahead of World Vegan Day on 1 November – found 92% of British consumers would prefer to buy dairy-free milk made from UK ingredients. Two-thirds cited their support for British farmers as a reason.
However, only one third of respondents said they checked the ingredients of their plant-based milk before buying it.
UK shoppers unaware
Philip Rayner, co-founder of Glebe Farm Foods said the research suggested UK shoppers were not aware that almost all plant-based options had to travel large distances from continental Europe or beyond to get here.
“Our PureOaty is made exclusively from British oats and manufactured in the UK because we don’t see why British consumers should have to compromise on taste, provenance or sustainability when it comes to dairy-alternative products,” said Rayner.
The research also found that 81% of respondents wouldn’t buy cow’s milk imported from outside of the UK, while a further 89% said they were more likely to shop local and support British food since the pandemic.
Supporting British
“We’re thrilled to see a majority of the nation wanting to support British farmers and are proud of Glebe Farm’s ability to offer a simple oat milk that is ‘food miles better’ because its made so much closer to home,” Rayner added.
Growing interested in oat-based drinks has seen a number of new developments pop up around the UK, the most recent being the construction of a new multi-million pound oat processing plant in Northamptonshire.
Promising to create 60 new jobs, the new site will be located in a ‘key arable region’ between Corby and Kettering to help reduce food miles and give UK producers easy access to oats and oat-based ingredients.
Meanwhile, the rapid growth of the plant-based food trend has created a number of challenges for flavourings manufacturers, who must deal with the complexity of alternative proteins when compared with their animal-based counterparts.
