Potato Milk: A Plant-Based Dairy Alternative

When it comes to non-dairy milks, you’ve got your soy, your cashew, your almond, your oat, your potato…wait…your potato?! Yes, you read that correctly! Potato milk seems to be the latest addition to the ever-increasing list of non-dairy milks out there, and it may just be the plant-based alternative you’ve been looking to add to your diet. While it may seem like a strange choice, there are advantages to producing and consuming potato milk that you don’t necessarily get with the other non-dairy options. But before you start trying to milk your own potatoes at home, let’s learn more about this latest plant-based dairy alternative.

What is Potato Milk?

It is just what you expect - milk made from potatoes. Don’t expect it to taste like you’re gulping down French fries, though, as its white and milky texture tends to have a rather mild flavour.

Where Did Potato Milk Come From?

In short, Sweden. Professor Eva Tornberg at Lund University first developed potato milk when she found that the high-quality proteins in potatoes could be transformed into milk. All it required was the addition of ingredients such as pea protein, rapeseed oil, and chicory fibre.

Where Can You Find Potato Milk?

DUG, which is owned by Veg of Lund, is the Swedish brand who is currently selling potato milk based on Professor Tornberg’s formula. While you may have a hard time finding this milk in North America, it is being sold in Swedish and UK-based stores.

What Are the Benefits of Drinking Potato Milk?

You are definitely going to get some health benefits from drinking potato milk, but there is another, perhaps surprising, advantage to this plant-based dairy alternative: sustainability.

It’s a Healthy Option

DUG’s unsweetened variety of potato milk contains some important nutrients, including:

Calcium
Vitamin D
Riboflavin
Vitamin B12
Folic acid

Some types of potatoes are also excellent sources of antioxidants, which can help reduce your risk of diseases such as heart disease and certain cancers.

It’s Sustainable

Plant-based milks don’t exactly have the greatest reputation when it comes to sustainability. Let’s take a look at how potato milk compares to some of the most popular non-dairy options, according to the CBC.

A kilogram of almonds requires a staggering 16,000 litres of water, while a kilogram of potatoes only requires 270 litres.
The same amount of soybeans require 2,500 litres of water, which is a little better than almond. However, soy milk has another issue: in terms of greenhouse gas emissions, it may be the worst plant-based dairy alternative.
Oat milk has a comparable carbon and water footprint to potato milk, but it’s about 2 times less efficient when it comes to land use.

Though there are clearly some environmental concerns when it comes to these plant-based milks, they still all perform significantly better than dairy milk. In terms of water use, land use, and greenhouse gas emissions, dairy has the worst environmental impact by far. If you’re looking for a mild-tasting, healthy, environmentally-friendly plant-based dairy alternative, then the answer is clear: get your hands on some potato milk!