2015 State of the Beverage Industry: Almond milk continues to lead dairy alternatives
Coconut milk continues to show potential
Recently, plant-based dairy alternatives such as almond milk and coconut milk are taking their success mainstream. Although soy milk has been an option available at major coffeehouses for years, only recently did almond and coconut milk begin making an appearance.
Refrigerated almond milk dollar sales increased 23.9 percent, and refrigerated coconut milk dollar sales grew by 9.2 percent in the 52 weeks ending May 17, according to data from Information Resources Inc. (IRI), Chicago. Likewise, almond milk was featured in nearly half of dairy-alternative drink launches in the United States during the 12 months ending June 30, 2014, Natalie Tremellen, market analyst at Innova Market Insights, the Netherlands, told Beverage Industry in the November 2014 issue. Globally, almond milk was used in nearly one-fifth of new dairy alternatives, up from 14 percent in 2013, she says. Worldwide dairy-alternative drink launches featuring coconut milk increased 40 percent during the timeframe, she said.