Overherd Launches UK’s First Vegan Oat Milk Powder
Overherd, a Yorkshire based start-up is aiming to make plant milk even more sustainable by offering the UK’s first oat milk powder.
Typically, store bought plant milks contain over 90% water, which adds a huge amount of weight and packaging requirements to products. Overherd’s ‘just add water’ solution allows consumers to add the water at home which significantly reduces the need for bulky packaging. For this, Overherd has traded in conventional milk cartons for a super lightweight recyclable pouch, with each unit capable of producing up to 8 litres of on demand, delicious and instant oat milk.
Sandy Eyre, founder of Overherd says, “I believe that plant milk is a bit like blackcurrant squash – it wouldn’t make sense to buy squash pre-mixed. It would be super bulky and packaging intensive – we think the same applies to plant milk, which is why we focus on the oat concentrate, the part that provides the flavour and nutrition.”
In 2021, oat milk surpassed almond to become the UK’s most popular plant milk, and it happens to be one of the most sustainable, producing 75% fewer CO2 emissions than dairy on a litre for litre basis. It is also far less resource intensive, requiring only a fraction of the water and land that dairy demands.
More good news
A lighter and less bulky products also translate to a reduction in carbon emissions throughout the supply chain. Powdered milk is 10 times lighter than its pre-mixed counterpart, and this equals fewer trucks and subsequently lower transport emissions.
Overherd is also tackling the issue of food waste, and with over 490 million pints of milk thrown away each year in the UK alone, this has both economic and environmental ramifications. Powdered oat milk naturally has a much longer shelf life than pre-mixed milks, so off milk will no longer be a concern. Consumers will be able to mix the exact amount of milk needed at the point of use, which will also reduce the amount of unused milk going to waste.
Availability
Overherd will be launching their new oat milk powder on Friday 27th January 2023, and will be available to purchase at overherd.uk – their direct-to-consumer website.
The author
This post was written by Pia Werzinger
As Viva!'s Food and Cookery Digital Media Manager, Pia is keeping you up to date on the latest recipes and vegan food news.