My eye is always caught by updated research findings on various food choices that are found to be either more environmentally friendly or healthier to consume–better for the planet or better for the human body–or both. I started a month-long test of my ability to give up foods and beverages that strain the environment and my body, so this article was on my to-read list the last few days:
Plant-based milk is better for the planet than dairy, but it can have a dark side. Photograph: Prostock-studio/Alamy Stock Photo
Almonds are out. Dairy is a disaster. So what milk should we drink?
A glass of dairy milk produces almost three times more greenhouse gas than any plant-based milk. But vegan options have drawbacks of their own
For environmentally minded consumers, the news is hard to swallow: almond milk is not healthy for the planet and the popular milk substitute is especially hard on bees. Our recent investigation into the connection between California’s industrialized almond industry and a record 50bn commercial bee deaths created quite a buzz. The widely read story prompted one primary response from readers: “What should we be drinking instead?”
This is a thorny question, and food sustainability experts are reluctant to single out any one plant milk as best because all have pros and cons.
But we’re going to try.
One thing is clear. All milk alternatives are far better for the planet than dairy. A 2018 study by researchers at the University of Oxford showed that producing a glass of dairy milk results in almost three times more greenhouse gas emissions than any plant-based milk and it consumes nine times more land than any of the milk alternatives. (Land is required to pasture the cows and grow their feed, which the animals belch out in the form of methane.)…
Read the whole review here.
