Growing global demand for Dairy Milk Alternatives

There is a growing global movement in favour for plant-based milk alternatives as consumers globally get to appreciate the taste of such products, some of which taste even better than milk.
Some of the products have already been in the market for hundreds of years, for example soybean milk known for its rich protein content almost close to the original dairy milk itself.
Much to the surprise of everyone, many of these dairy alternatives originate from the Asian continent – soybean milk from mainland China while almond milk has its beginning in the Middle East.
Soybean milk is still the most popular substitute to original dairy (cow) milk due to its high protein content offering a good substitute to milk, apart from its delicious taste.
According to latest statistics from Statista, soybean milk alone has a market value of US$16.26 billion in 2019. However, Statista estimated the global market size for plant-based beverages at US$9.8 billion in 2017, probably excluding the soybean milk category from this estimate.
Meanwhile, in a report recently released by Research & Markets, the plant-based milk market is projected to reach US$21.5 billion in 2024, growing at a CAGR of 10.18%. The report also highlighted that this category is mainly concentrated on soy and almond milk offerings.
Higher disposable incomes, lactose intolerance, concerns over obesity and diabetes, and rising health benefits related to these products could have accelerated the growth of this milk category. However, some consumers still worry over the use of beverage additives and even sugar in these products. The following Chart 1.0 shows the different types of plant-based milk and the varying amount of protein contents in each product. Apparently, soybean milk is the only one that comes close to the dairy (cow) milk in terms of protein contents.