How Many Almonds Are Actually In Your Almond Milk?

In the US, consumers are taking a stand against products being labeled and marketed as almond milk but only contain, in some instances, as little as 1% per carton. According to Time, a class-action lawsuit against Almond Breeze, which markets itself as “made with real almonds” but only contains 2% of almonds, could see plaintiffs receive $5 million in damages for false advertising.

“It’s mostly made up of water, sugar, carrageenan (a thickener), and sunflower lecithin,” another article reports – with packaging that could arguably lead consumers to assume a much larger proportion of almonds. Just how much larger, is a question that is yet to be answered. But whilst almond milk is certainly the flavour of the month as a dairy alternative, it certainly makes us wonder just how other leading British brands stack up in comparison.

“Improving honesty and transparency in food marketing is at the core of what we do,” says Rachel Hurn-Maloney, founder of British almond milk company, Alt Milk.

“We’ve put a considerable amount of thought into the percentage of almonds used in our milk and believe that it’s paramount that standards for dairy-free milk are set at a higher level,” she adds. “It was important for us to consider both the quality of taste and the nutritional content, while keeping in mind affordability and sustainability for the future.”

In light of the American outcry, we spent some time perusing the shelves of major supermarkets, honing in on packaging with cupped handfuls of almonds since, surely, this must be an indication of high almond content? Here are the results:

Almond Breeze Unsweetened

Actual almond content: 2%
Other ingredients: Spring Water, Calcium Carbonate, Tapioca Starch, Sea Salt, Stabiliser, Carrageenan, Emulsifier, Sunflower Lecithin, Natural Flavouring
Major stockists: Tesco, Waitrose
Cost: £1.49

Alpro Almond Unsweetened Fresh

Actual almond content: 2%
Other ingredients: Water, Calcium (tri-calcium phosphate), Sea salt, Stabilisers (Locus bean gum, Gellan gum), Emulsifier (Sunflower lecithin), Vitamins (Riboflavin (B2), B12, E, D2)
Major stockists: Waitrose, Ocado
Cost: £1.79

Ecomil Almond Milk Sugar-Free

Actual almond content: 7%
Other ingredients: Water, Tapioca Starch, Natural Almond Flavouring
Major stockists: Whole Foods, Ocado
Cost: £3.15

Alt Milk

Actual almond content: 15%
Other ingredients: Filtered Water, Vanilla, Organic Medjool Dates, Himalayan Salt
Major stockists: Harrods, Fortnum & Mason
Cost: £6.95

Rude Health Almond Drink

Actual almond content: 1%
Other ingredients: Natural Spring Water, Organic Rice, Organic Cold-Pressed Sunflower Oil, Sea Salt
Major stockists: Tesco, Waitrose, Whole Foods
Cost: £1.99

So the question remains: what makes almond milk, real almond milk? Is it 5% or 30% almond content? Or somewhere in between? Let us know what you think in the comments below (plus, any other brands you’re loving!).