Ever heard of potato milk? The plant-based milk alternative could be the next dairy substitute cropping up at your local coffee shop.
And while you may have already swapped cows milk for almond, oat or soy in a bid to do your bit for the environment, potato milk is actually an even greener option.
What is potato milk?
Potato milk is exactly what it sounds like. Milk, made from potatoes. The dairy alternative is gaining notability across Europe and could be on its way to being a plant-based milk as popular as almond, oat and soya.
It's super environmentally friendly, too. Producing potatoes for potato milk uses around 56 times less water than almond milk and just half the land needed to grow oats for oat milk.
It's a pretty great option in terms of nutrition as well, with 100ml of potato milk offering around 15% of your daily reference intake of calcium, vitamin D, vitamin B12 and folic acid, plus less than 40 calories.
Fancy trying some? Swedish milk brand DUG has launched three potato milk options available to buy in the UK and across Europe now, although it hasn't quite made it to the US yet.
The brand say, "DUG is a delicious, creamy and vegan-friendly plant-based drink. It’s made from potatoes, has a really low climate footprint and can be used just like any other milk. Genius."
The product is available in three varieties, so there's a potato milk for everything. The first is DUG Original, which is said to be the best option to replace your usual milk or milk alternative.
DUG recommends using it in cereal, smoothies, and cooking, promising that it's perfect for everyday general use.
There's also DUG Barista. This drink, as you may have guessed, is best used in coffees and teas. This product foams like regular milk and boasts a signature creamy taste that the likes of whole milk or oat milk would provide.
The final potato milk substitute offered by DUG is, DUG Unsweetened. This is the most natural of the three options as it features no added sweeteners. This milk also foams and is the perfect choice for those after a skinny cappuccino.
With potato milk gaining popularity and attention within the plant milk world, it's divided plenty of opinions, with some milk fans sceptical and others totally converted.
"Potato water ok, potato juice possibly but potato milk… there is no such thing," said one incredulous social media user.
"Potato milk?… is that the alternative name for Vodka?" asked another witty Twitter user.
"Absolutely not," was another social media user's simple reaction to this new trend.
And while some people haven't been easily convinced to join the potato milk hype, customers who have actually tried the product have been very positive and the product is averaging 4.1 out of 5 stars on Amazon.
One delighted fan wrote a review of the product that read, "I was so pleasantly surprised by this milk!!! Couldn't believe it when I saw 'Potato' milk, so thought I'd give it a try, and I'm a total convert!
"Love its creamy and very subtle sweet taste, perfect in your hot drinks, cereal and/or in baking! I've tried them all and they all work! Makes a wicked latte too... Absolutely love this!!"
Another reviewer also left a glowing review about this product, writing, "I've been drinking plant-based milk for a while now, and was so intrigued to try "potato" milk!
"Never heard of it before... So I ordered it, and was so pleasantly surprised at how delicious it is!"
"The Barista tastes divine and is brilliant with coffee, and I like the Original in my cereal/porridge. The Unsweetened also foams well in a latte, if you like a completely unsweetened coffee like me. I have yet to use it in cooking, but I will certainly be trying it!"
Although the product may sound a bit bizarre, it seems that there are already plenty potato milk converts who love the stuff. Will you give it a try?
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