This is being fuelled by its increasing popularity in the West, where it is moving out of the specialist heath food arena and into the mainstream.
Soy milks traditionally dominate the sector and still featured in 78% of dairy alternative drinks launches, either as a main or secondary ingredient.
But there has been rising interest in the use of other plant-based alternatives, including cereals, such as rice, oats and barley, and nuts, such as almonds, hazelnuts and walnuts.
Rice was the second most popular ingredients after soy, but at a considerable distance, featuring in 17% of introductions. This is ahead of oats in 11% and almonds in 10%.
Almond milks have continued to grow in popularity. Their share of global launches has reached its present level of 10% from just 3% in 2005.
Following the flurry of activity in almond milks in the US in 2010 and 2011, a rise in interest was recorded in Europe, particularly the UK, in 2012.
As well as single-source milk alternatives, there has been a rising use of blends, such as soy and rice, or multi-grain options. The move towards the combination of different non-dairy ingredient sources has been developing in recent years, and again the US has been leading the way.
Source: Innova Market Insights
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