Is Almond Milk Worse For the Environment Than Cow’s Milk?

By Natasha Poon

In coffee-shops, restaurants, and along the aisles of supermarkets, the presence of plant-based milk has been growing. Among the various ingredients and brands, almond milk is prevalent. Those who prefer almond milk may believe this milk has a smaller carbon footprint when compared with dairy milk. However, almond milk still negatively affects the environment, just in different ways than dairy milk. Water use and pesticide use are among the main concerns associated with the production of almond milk. This particularly impacts California, where more than 80% of the world’s almonds are grown. 

Brands of plant-based milks and dairy milks are processed differently and use various strategies to reduce their environmental impact. This makes it hard to compare general categories of milk. Nonetheless, regarding whether or not almond milk is bad for the environment, a few assumptions can be made with a high level of confidence.

Pesticides and Water Usage

As aforementioned, California grows a majority of the almonds in the world, creating an almond monoculture. A monoculture is a single crop being grown in a concentrated area. This can lead to pathogens and diseases growing in the soil due to the lack of diverse organisms in the area. As a result, heavy pesticide use is common in the production of almonds. These pesticides contaminate California’s already limited water sources. In addition, out of the nine different pesticides used on almonds, five of which are toxic to honey bees, posing yet another threat to the environment.

Further, intensive almond cultures demand large amounts of water. Compared with other nuts, almonds have a larger water footprint. Studies show that almond milk uses almost 20 times more water than dairy milk. In fact, the estimated total water footprint for one California almond is 4L. As a result, regarding water usage, the production of almond milk can be considered harmful to the environment. 

Cow’s milk or Almond Milk?

This isn’t to say that cow’s milk, which takes about 100 litres of water to produce 100ml of milk, is more environmentally friendly. Life cycle assessments (which assess the impact of a product throughout its lifetime) indicate that almond milk is more water-intensive, while cow milk is a heavier CO2 polluter. So which milk is more environmentally friendly? Between almond and dairy milk, the question depends if you choose to advocate for climate change and a reduction in CO2, or water conservation.

While this may not provide clarity on which milk to choose, as Rachel Hosie said in her Insider article, “the fact that you’re thinking about your environmental impact is to be applauded, so don’t beat yourself up for trying to make a perfect choice — there’s no such thing.”