A Lancashire based oat drink producer, making fresh oat drink from British oats, has struck a national deal that will see their fresh drink distributed in reusable pint glass bottles nationally on milk floats, alongside traditional dairy milk. Oat drink is commonly referred to as Oat Milk.
The national distribution deal with Milk & More means that fresh oat drink will now be delivered in reusable glass pint bottles to doorsteps before 7am across most of England. According to data from Nielsen Scantrack, sales of products made from oat, almond and soya increased by 239% between February 2010 and February 2020. The plant-based food market in the UK has a value approaching £0.5BN. Conversely, since its consumption heyday in the 1950s, 60s and 70s, per-capita consumption of milk in the UK has fallen by a third. Polling indicates that a third of under-35s are cutting back on consuming dairy.
A 2018 Oxford University study found that oat m*lk has a third of the environmental impact as cows’ milk.
The drink is made fresh near Lancaster with oats sourced exclusively from UK farms. Oato’s SALSA accredited site has capacity to meet UK-wide demand.
Carl Hopwood, founder of Oato, said: “We’ve been producing fresh oat drink with great success for local milk rounds. Demand has been growing and we’re thrilled to now be able to deliver to doorsteps across the UK via Milk & More and our network of other distributors. Oato is a fresh product that tastes creamier than long life supermarket alternatives. It needs to be refrigerated, like dairy milk, so once you milk has arrived, pick it up in the morning and pop it in the fridge.”
Oat drink is now a popular choice on cereal, in coffee, tea or in cooking. Oato is lactose, nut, sugar and soy free. It can be micro-foamed for coffee. It is naturally sweetened through enzymes that are used to break down the starch into shorter sugars. Oato is suitable for vegan diets.
The pint bottle has been an iconic doorstep delivery symbol for more than 100 years. Oato is committed to the pint bottle and to distribution via local milkmen and women. Each bottle is used on average 25 times. The glass is then recycled.