Non-dairy drinks surge in Scandinavia

Sales of non-dairy drinks are rising at a rapid rate in Scandinavia on the back of marketing efforts of retailers and new product launches, reports market analyst Organic Monitor.​

The rising incidence of food allergies and the perceived benefits of dairy alternatives are encouraging the Scandinavian consumer - currently the largest milk drinker in Europe - to plump for non-dairy options.

According to the market analyst, supermarkets in the region have been quick to respond to this trend, stocking a variety of non-dairy drinks in a large number of stores.

Reflecting this growing need, a new report by Organic Monitor suggests that high market growth rates have encouraged a number of Scandinavian companies to start production of non-dairy products. Sweden is the leading producer in the region and it is the source of two-thirds of the oat drinks sold in Europe and accounts for half of all total revenues.

Innovation, the key to gaining market share, will drive market growth in the coming years. A number of new oat drinks have been launched in the last year, which includes new flavours from the leading Oatly brand, as well as a novel yoghurt-like oat drink.

Organic Monitor suggests that the Norwegian market will likely show the highest growth as the number of retailers offering non-dairy drinks continues to rise. Norwegian revenues are forecast to double between 2003 and 2009.

So what is the favourite non-dairy tipple? Soya milk appears to be the preferred dairy milk substitute in most Nordic countries, followed by oat drinks. These two segments account for over three-quarters of non-dairy drink volumes. Although organic varieties currently have 52 per cent market share of all non-dairy drinks, Organic Monitor predicts that the market share will decline as new product development comes up with increasing numbers of non-organic product launches.

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