Overherd (zero waste oat drink powder)
Overherd is an oat drink powder that you buy online. Mix with water, to make your own affordable oat drink (also idea if you don’t live near an oat drink stockist or have no fridge). This is great, because you are not paying to ship water, and an ideal standby, if good quality oat drink is not sold in local shops.
Oat drink isn’t a replacement for infant formula (speak to your GP or midwife about dairy alternatives for babies and weaning. Also keep it away from pets, as ingredients like nuts and chocolate can harm). Read more on food safety for people & pets.
You can also buy an optional travel tin and glass bottle with a pourable spout, ideal when you’re out and about!
Why are people giving up dairy?
No-one denies that a small organic dairy farmer treats his cows well. But the big dairy industry (from where most dairy milk is produced – especially for all the by-products used in ready-meals etc) has huge welfare concerns.
In the UK, most male calves (of no financial use to the dairy industry – separate from beef industry) are shot dead, soon after birth. Many cows spend their entire lives in factory farms, being inseminated and giving birth, then having their calves taken from them. Cows and calves form incredibly strong relationships, and will cry out loudly for weeks, if separated.
The many benefits of oat drink
- Oat drink makes creamy drinks. It’s naturally thick and creamy, so often the best choice for coffee shops selling cappuccinos and hot chocolates.
- Oat drink has healthy fibre. No animal foods have fibre. But oat drink does. Just like porridge, it contains soluble fibre, that kind of ‘sweeps out your insides’ of bad cholesterol. Naturally cholesterol-free, it’s a great alternative if you like creamy drinks (or carbonara-style creamy pasta dishes).
- Oat drink is high in calcium. We are often told that we must drink dairy for calcium. But in fact, many plant foods are high in calcium and protein, and oats are one of them. As part of a balanced diet, they are packed with nutrients.
- Oat drink supports local farmers. Organic oats can be locally grown. Farmers can grow oats to transfarm from livestock (leaving animals to live out lives in peace). This gives good income in a huge market (most oat drink is imported) and keeps long-held family farms in business, as people eat more plants and less meat.
Just as there are issues with almonds grown in California (migrating farming leaves bees to starve after the harvest, which is why it’s important to buy European-grown nuts), also most oat milk sold in shops is watered down along with oil, and hardly contains any oats. Same with cashew milk.
Note oat milk is not so high in protein, so ensure you eat plenty of plant-based proteins.
Ongoing debate on oat drink labels
Recently, Dairy UK won a court case against Oatly, to stop it using the words ‘milk’ or ‘post-milk-generation’, so now all such beverages must be called ‘oat drink’. The idea is that consumers don’t get confused, but we’re quite intelligent, and seems to be about listening to those lobbying for the farming industry (most dairy sold in the UK is not from certified free-range cows happily grazing in fields).
Factory livestock farming is a major emitter of greenhouse gases, so how this tallies with net zero policies of the government is not clear. The same happened in Sweden, when the powerful national dairy board took Oatly (a Swedish company) to court. It caused the founder so much good publicity and increased sales, he says he wished they’d taken him to court years ago!
Although it’s not as ‘ethical’ as the brands above, it does offer unique products like vanilla and caramel versions, and is the first to offer ‘single serve‘ (to replace individual milk pots you find in hotels).
